Joseph Wilhelm Photography

Patrick Creek Campground No. 1, 2011

Early fall in 2010 I was invited to be part of a photography show featuring about twenty students from Professor Tom Knight’s long career of teaching. Tom was the founding father of the Humboldt State University photography department from which I graduated (1989 and 1992). The show is at the Morris Graves Museum of Art until February 5th, 2012 and is called, A Tom Knight Legacy.

The photo above is my contribution to the show. It is shown here in its frame as a finished object. You may want to check out the zoom feature above – the detail may surprise you – please be sure to let your browser fully load the image for full clarity (this Flash version of Zoomify will soon be replaced with an HTML version).

I had dabbled with photography prior to having taken my first class with Tom Knight in 1987. By then, I knew how to take photographs of things but it was from Tom that I first learned of the history and the art of photography. From Tom I learned photography was the most engaging when it transcended being a picture of something to being about something. This extra depth could touch our heart, our mind, our soul. Tom taught me to dig deeper and this furthered my interest.

I am a photographer because of a spark I caught from Tom Knight. From my first course in 1987, I continued to take classes with Tom including independent study as well as class and darkroom assistant until his passing in 1990. He helped me develop a sensitivity for light on form and to see photography as an artistic expression capable of being profound. Through Tom’s teaching, I learned what photography could be. It is limitless, with great potential for self-expression as well as world exploration.

Collophon

Photograph was recorded late morning of  September 4th, 2011 with a Betterlight panoramic scanback and Linhoff Master Technica view camera. Master file processed as DNG, 16 bits per RGB channel with Adobe Camera RAW and Photoshop CS5; 5990 pixels high x 9912 pixels wide.

Image is 22″ x 45.5″ framed to 32″ x 47″ in solid cherry with smoky finish; printed with an HP Z3200 with Vivera ink on Canson Platine cotton paper top-coated with UV filtering lacquer by Premier Imaging Products; Bainbridge 4ply Alpharag mat for window, Tru Vue Museum Glass for glazing; mounted to Bainbridge 4 ply Alpharag mat with Bienfang Ragmount heat activated adhesive at 175 degrees*; backed with Bienfang archival foamboard with fluted polypropylene dust cover.

Photography, printing and framing by Joseph Wilhelm ©2011.

* I do not often mount my prints but in this case the image is trimmed to the edge and adhered to a cotton substrate. The rest of the package is as preservation framed as possible. Why mounted? This is the way we did it back when I was a student. As students, we were expected to present our work mounted for critique. The mounted print was finished and ready for presentation, advanced students were even encouraged to use window matts and to cut your own. That is a lot of extra overhead for “simply” learning about photography. But that’s what one does when in love with the work and process of making as masterful a print as possible and then finishing by preparing it for display. The mounting method is out of nostalgia for past practices but not completely. The surface of the print and the inked image look fabulous when vacuum pressed flat and smooth and then well illuminated.

I grew up with coyotes as part of life. Living on the edge of town; coyotes were common visitors, sometimes their howls and yips emerging from the depths of night were numerous and eerie, other times as poetic lone howling.

My family lost many chickens and cats to coyotes. I did not hate them for it, but saw it as a responsibility to ensure the chickens were in their coop at night and an acceptance that if cats were to be free and outdoors they needed to be savvy or face the consequences. It was just a fact of living in the humanized wilderness.

Coyotes are found throughout North and Central America and unlike wolves have adapted well to living in the presence of humans. They are opportunistic eaters, feeding on a diverse range of food from insects to rodents, to larger invertebrates such as sheep, deer, and even elk. The coyote’s love for sheep and other livestock has earned them a high disregard from ranchers. In fact the federal government routinely shoots, poisons, traps and kills 90,000 coyotes each year to protect livestock.

A “common” practice in some rural regions dominated by ranching is to shoot coyotes (which requires a hunting license but does not require a permit) and if a fence is available the coyote may be hung or draped on the fence as a “warning” for other coyotes to stay away. Is this the intention of the coyote displayed here on a barbed wire fence? All I know is there were cows in the field east of the fence and to the west the sun was over a sea of blue, dipping toward the horizon, reaching for the Pacific. I can easily imagine a dead coyote displayed on a fence in Texas or Idaho, but along the bucolic California coast it seems out of sorts.

Life is full. Time reserved for my own photographic work comes here and there amongst the juggling act of the day to day. Sometimes I have a week, sometimes I have a day, sometimes I only have the time in between those moments in passing from one place to another. I see things all the time in passing and I have learned that I ought to have my camera along just in case.

The photo above, Art Sale, Central Avenue, McKinleyville, CA is one such photograph that came about in one of those in between places of going to the hardware store for some 3 inch screws and going to A&L Feed for bee-keeping supplies. The camera was in the car and my daughter, Evelyn was with me too. I asked if she wouldn’t mind if we stopped at the Art Sale to take a look. A lover of animals, she saw a painting of a rooster from the car and so shared my curiosity.

What kind of art is sold from a trailer parked in a field near a parking lot?

To avoid trouble I don’t have an answer to express here other than to say that artists of all types are trying to figure how to make a living from their art. Selling from a trailer in a parking lot is one way. It’s not much different than selling on e-bay or at street fairs or buying art from Costco or Target but again I wondered, what kind of art is sold from a trailer in this manner? I just had to take a look. And having once directed a gallery for three years, I very much wanted to photograph this roadside gallery. At first, I wasn’t sure if I wanted to photograph in stealth, without interaction with the proprietor, or to photograph with his awareness.

Upon viewing the art, I suspected it was mass produced in a Chinese factory. I was wrong. According to Edward, the art dealer waiving to us in the photo, the paintings are from various artists living in LA. Little more information was volunteered and I felt uncomfortable prying too hard. But I did learn the art was on sale because he had too many paintings and needed to clear his inventory. The paintings were oil on canvas, most had no signatures and all were painted prior to stretching. It’s much easier to paint on un-stretched canvas as Edward explained. I’m not a painter so what do I know but it seemed odd to me.

When asked about prices, Edward said it was up to me to find an image I like and then make an offer based on it’s worth to me. I didn’t find a painting I liked and I have never been one to enjoy a good round of let’s make a deal. And I never expected to buy anything anway. Nevertheless, Edward was a pleasant man to speak with and when leaving I asked if I could photograph. He said certainly and even gave us a wave and a smile.

On April 19th this site (josephwilhelm.com) was updated from a former Blogger hosted site.  Some of the previous content was published on Blogger and imported, some of it was created on a test server as I edited the template’s code to better suit my needs. I will be fine-tuning during May as time permits. Thank you for visiting.

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Signs are fascinating. This one caught my attention because of the second line that reads FREEDOM FROM DANGER OR RISK. The sign is located near an ammunition storage facility in Hawthorn, Nevada. From what I understand, this is the largest such storage facility in North America. It was moved here after a deadly series of explosions at a munitions dump near a populated center in New Jersey during the 1920′s.

The road seen in the photo is a public street with no indication or obstacles indicating I shouldn’t be there.  While stopping to photograph, I drew the attention of the local security officials. First a fire truck of some sort pulled over and reported my presence. I left before the security guards arrived, passing them in the opposite direction. I was confident I had done nothing wrong but still wished to avoid a conversation.

This experience perhaps influenced the photo below. The small size of the photo here won’t reveal it but the sign actually says “WARNING! PHOTOGRAPHY OF THIS AREA IS PROHIBITED.” On the other side of the fence is Area 51. Internet rumor and mythology will have one believe that upon photographing I would be descended upon by “camo dudes” with automatic weapons.

Anyway, unlike the previous experience, I got out of the car and wanted to speak with someone. I was completely ignored. There are surveillance cameras on the poles and there is a guard next to the white pickup truck looking straight at me. Honestly, I didn’t know what would happen if I were to photograph. Would I get a citation of $600.00 for my first offense? Would they take my camera or confiscate my CF card? Is it actually legal for them to prevent me from photographing from 100 feet away? Could they follow me home and accuse me of being a terrorist? I suppose this ambiguity is in their favor and it did make me a bit paranoid.

But wait a minute, surely the sign means that one is not to photograph once inside. That makes sense so I took a photo. But nevertheless, I was a bit fearful. Now really, isn’t this all a bit silly? There is nothing in this photograph you can’t see on Google Earth.