Edward Weston (1886 – 1958) was a famous still life, nude and landscape photographer that came into prominence during the early part of the 20th century. An early contemporary of Ansel Adams, Weston founded Group f/64 with Adams, Imogen Cunningham and several others. This movement of sharp, in-focus art has influenced decades of landscape photographers to this day. Weston was arguably best known for still life and nude model photography rather than landscapes but his Point Lobos photos were highly-influential during his time and are frequently found in museum collections today.
Weston’s career was cut short after being diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease in 1946. His relatively short career did influence his sons, Brett Weston and Cole Weston, to become renowned photographers in their own right. The Weston Family legacy spanned a great part of the 20th century.
Edward Weston’s work was certainly original for its day. I personally do not feel that his work holds up that well to the standard of work done today but that is how evolution works. Someone comes up with an original idea then others come along to refine and evolve from those ideas. Weston’s work should be viewed through a historical lens rather than purely on its own aesthetic merit.
Famous Edward Weston Prints
- Steel: Armco, Middletown, Ohio (1922) – this photo marked a turning point in Weston’s artistic vision and career. Previously favoring a pictorialism style, this sharp literal rendition of smokestacks led him down the path of “straight photography” which resulted in his later famous works.
- Pepper No. 30 (1930) - a sensual composition of a bell pepper has an erotic quality reminiscent of his nude art.
- Dunes at Oceano (1936) - it's hard to pick a single defining landscape from Weston's collection since his body of work was so diverse but if I had to pick it would be Dunes at Oceano.
- Nude, 1936 (227N) - the subject, Charis Wilson, was at the time Weston's photography assistant. Wilson became his wife a year later.
Thoughts About Edward Weston Limited Edition Photography Prints
Edward Weston fine art prints often command a premium in the secondary art market often for five and six-figure sums. Weston's most valuable print, Nude (1925), sold for $1.6m in 2008 according to Wikipedia. Given the relative stability of value for historic photography, it's easy to see why some wealthy investors choose to acquire artwork of Weston's ilk.
If investment value is your primary goal as an art collector then by all means consider purchasing an original Weston print. This style of photography is not really my cup of tea from an aesthetic standpoint as I couldn’t imagine myself hanging his works on my own walls. The great thing about art is that it is completely subjective. While art museums tend to favor historic works, there are many other artists out there producing amazing work as well that might not have institutional support. Art patrons allow artists to pursue their muse. My own muse happens to be landscape photography. I couldn’t care less if museums ever notice me. While it would be a nice feather in the cap, I’m more motivated to pursue my own personal vision and share it with the public via this website. Secondary market value shouldn’t be the determining factor for whether you like the art or not.
