Thursday, 22 March 2018

Inspiration: Harry Callahan

I started my research about Harry Callahan because he had incorporated double and multiple exposure techniques in many aspects of his work. But I soon discovered there was much more to learn…

Harry Callahan (1912-1999), an American photographer, worked from the 1940s to the 1990s.

Callahan was known for his eclectic interests including nature, the city and portraits. He liked to photograph the things he saw around him and felt that these diverse interests represented his life. He believed that if he lived strongly, being in a place where he’d like to be, enjoying rich experiences he would keep his photographs alive. He didn’t want to be a certain kind of photographer believing that having a style is being dead.

In 1941, Ansel Adams became an early influence on Callahan’s photography when he addressed a camera club meeting. In 1946, when he went to teach at Chicago’s Institute of Design, he formed three friendships with colleagues who were significant influences – painter and sculptor Hugo Weber, architect Mies van der Rohe and photographer Aaron Siskind. Edward Steichen encouraged and promoted Callahan’s work (MoMA press release, 2/12/76).

Unlike many of his contemporaries, Callahan was not a rock star photographer and chose not to specifically focus on social issues. He would work on a subject until it ended, maybe for a week or a year or two, or until he lost his enthusiasm. Then he would change subject or camera to renew his interest. He loved teaching and saw this work as providing an environment for ‘finding your own way’. 

Admired for both his skill in capture and in the darkroom Callahan did not see himself as a technical expert and when asked he responded – ‘oh no I’m not technical, I can’t do that’. His practice included using a range of cameras, such as 8x10 and 35mm, and a range of film. He used colour transparencies and die transfers, sometimes waiting many years until he had the money for expensive printing processes that would give him the rich blues and reds that he wanted.

 Chicago, 1951

Nature

His early work in the 1940s was focused on nature. He photographed trees, grasses, reeds in water, reflections and plants. He was inspired by Steiglitz’s cloud images and his photographs featured high contrast, strong lines and a degree of abstraction.

Critics and curators argue that the fragments of nature he photographed show a strong sculptural dimension and skills of draftsmanship.

Callahan was interested in more than just line, he believed the subject was important too. He observed that you find your way by photographing things. He wondered whether the lines he found in nature were a subconscious representation of something other than the object being photographed, such as grasses and reeds suggesting hair.

 
 

Portraits

Callahan was also known for his photographs of people, particularly his wife Eleanor and his daughter Barbara. He photographed Eleanor nude, paying great attention to lighting and composition. His photographs of Eleanor include silhouettes and distorted/blurred images often featuring high contrast and usually shot in black and white. His nudes were intimate, quiet, sensitive, and made great use of light and shadow.

 
 

At one stage, looking for something new, he used his 8 x 10 camera as a point-and-shot to create photographs of Eleanor and Barbara with a snapshot feel. He observed that when you make 8 x 10 snapshots, it drifts into something else.

 

Chicago

Callahan’s work also focussed on the city, particularly Chicago.

His city work features:
  • repetition of pattern
  • double/triple/multiple exposures
  • collage type work
  • frames within compositions
  • mage manipulation in-camera
  • cubist-like architectural works (Escher-like)
  • line and shape
  • sense of depth/focal point
  • minimalist
  • no distracting information, nothing out of place
  • elements in line
  •  pre-visualising.

 Multiple exposures

As in other aspects of his work, Callahan used double/multiple exposures creating layered, geometric images of the city. In 1965 he had an exhibition, Multiple Exposure, at MOMA in New York. When working with multiple exposures he sometimes worked in-camera and in other situations created multiple exposures in the darkroom. Below are examples focused on buildings, architectural features and streetscapes.

 
 
 

In Chicago Loop, Callahan used 13 exposures to make a perfect composition that reflected on life and activity in the city. One commentator argued that it also showed a strong connection to the jazz he was listening to at the time. Interestingly this photograph was first printed the size of the contact negative which gave it an intimate, powerful punch. Then when it was exhibited as a larger image for a MOMA exhibition it took on a new life.

 Chicago Loop, 1948

At one point, Callahan moved his camera to focus on coloured lights and neon signs. He found the abstract results very beautiful and commented that the process was ‘like a prayer, you don’t really know what you’re doing’.



References

Printed word

Lyle Rexer (2009) The Edge of Vision: the rise of abstraction in photography Aperture, New York.
MoMA (1976) Harry Callahan, Press Release, 2/12/76, No 94)
Szarkowski, John (???) Harry Callahan, Aperture, Millerton, New York

Websites (word and image)

Web sites featuring the work of Harry Callahan (accessed 20/3/18):

Websites (video)

Web sites featuring the work of Harry Callahan (accessed 20/3/18):

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