ORGANIC SURREALISMEdward Henry Weston (American, 1886-1958)Labeled as “one of the most inn

ORGANIC SURREALISM

Edward Henry Weston (American, 1886-1958)

Labeled as “one of the most innovative and influential American photographers,” Weston was the first photographer to receive a Guggenheim Fellowship. Known for capturing countless subjects, such as landscape, nudes, portraits, still-lifes, Weston’s goal was “to make the commonplace unusual.” Although he emerged from the Victorian Era, his images portray an abstract modernism, which treads the realms of reality. For Weston the detail of a shell (Figure 2), onion (Figure 3) or pepper (Figure 4) "completely outside subject matter" was alluring. Making something ordinary extraordinary "takes one beyond the world we know in the conscious mind.“ Up-close, personal, and pictorial, Weston’s work is difficult to label. Although, he considered himself a realist, his vast imagination has lead him to be called the greatest American photographer.