Finally, time to feel like I’m
writing a real blog entry. The last few days were a little sketchy!
So, let’s talk some more about
Ansel Adams. (http://www.anseladams.com/ansel-adams-information/ansel-adams-biography/). First, a little interesting background. Adams hailed from San
Francisco, California, where he was an only child and was given a conservative,
Victorian style upbringing. When he was four, he broke his nose in an
earthquake, which left him with a distinctly crooked nose for life. Probably
due to his upbringing and crooked nose, Adams was a shy child and did not fit
in well at school, which resulted in his spending a lot of time exploring
nature. As I mentioned yesterday, his love of nature played a huge role in his
photography. In particular, Adams loved Yosemite, and spent a significant
amount of time there every year.
Adams devoted much of his time to
protecting the nature he loved, not just through photography but through
attending meetings and writing letters. However, his photographs exerted the
greatest influence on his goal of preservation. Adams showed the “magnificent natural
beauty of the West” in his photographs, and Adams earned a following of many
who loved his visual artistry. He used his art to serve a cause he believed in.
So many of the areas he photographed have been preserved because of his
efforts.
I like reading about this,
because I like thinking about how art has an influence on society. Although I
think “art just for art’s sake” is not a bad thing, there is something special
about art that is born out of the artist’s passion for a cause. Adams’ took
photographs because he loved the medium of photography, sure, but his own
passions influenced his subject matter. How wonderful to see your life’s work
changing something you care about for the better. Although I tend to side-eye a
bit people who say your job shouldn’t feel like “work” (I think this is a completely
impractical way for a society to run- I think you should care about doing good
work, but not all jobs are going to be things people are passionate about and those
jobs still must be done for society to function; there are ways to find
fulfillment in areas of life outside of your job, and working an “uninspiring”
job shouldn’t prevent you from living an inspired and fulfilling life), there
is undeniably something very cool and inspiring about someone who was able to
do something they truly loved and influence positive change in something they
cared about.
Below are a few examples of his
incredible nature photographs!
Xoxo,
Diana
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