Edward Weston. The Matter of Forms

Strongly linked to the landscape and cultural history of North America, the work of Edward Weston, in its extreme simplicity and originality, offers a unique perspective on the process of photography’s consolidation as an artistic medium and its significant role within the context of modernity in the visual arts. The exhibition Edward Weston. The matter of shapes is conceived as an anthology that covers the different phases of the artist’s photographic production.

A pioneer in the use of a modern photographic style, his use of the large-format camera resulted in richly detailed black-and-white images of extraordinary sharpness. His technical expertise and attachment to nature and form fostered the development of a body of work that features iconic images of still lifes, nudes, landscapes, and portraits. His images are essential to understanding the new aesthetics and the emerging American lifestyle in the United States during the Interwar period.

Curated by Sergio Mah, the exhibition is composed of around two hundred photographs grouped into seven sections. The exhibition is completed with extensive documentation material and is conceived from a European perspective on the legacy of modern North American photography. An aesthetic and conceptual counterpoint to photographic modernism in Europe, which emerged with the first avant-gardes of the 20th century.

Exhibition organized with the support of the Center for Creative Photography at the University of Arizona, Tucson.

Curator: Sergio Mah