Weekly Post, "The Daze of My Life: Robert Glenn Ketchum, An Autobiography"

The Daze of My Life:  Robert Glenn Ketchum, An Autobiography

Biographies are studies of someone's life based on cumulative research. Good ones may reveal something, but probably barely scratch the surface of what actually went on. The internet is allowing me to do something VERY different. 
~Robert Glenn Ketchum

Friday, March 22, 2019

The Daze of My Life:  Robert Glenn Ketchum, An Autobiography #140: Daze, #140:  Typical to my established work, and especially because the height of fall color is upon us, most of my first images of the Hudson River Valley are of the landscape. My effort to access estates and homes with views, is for the purpose of seeing the view, However, the longer I am in the valley, and the more I learn to appreciate its history, the more I take notice of the houses and architecture. It is clear the valley is not a wilderness, although there are many large, and VERY wild parks all along the river, but they exist interwoven with hamlets, small towns, great estates, and a lot of rural residential. Typically these are also “old” properties, many dating back into the late 1700’s. Much of what is here, is hidden by the trees of the forest, but winter proves revealing when the leaves are gone. I am actually surprised on some familiar drives to find houses I had not seen in my previous passing. Initially, obvious properties, like the spectacular Boscobel, seemed worthy subjects, but I soon realize those are pictures everyone has already seen. Besides, my project is about “the valley,” collectively, and how such structures are part of a greater whole. Nonetheless, these considerations change the direction of my work, and I begin to take note of the “neighborhood."

photograph(s) © copyright, ROBERT GLENN KETCHUM, 2019 

@RbtGlennKetchum @LittleBearProd #LittleBearProd

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Weekly Post, "Fish Farms: Forming My World View Through Aquaculture in 1977" by Robert Glenn Ketchum

Fish Farms:  Forming My World View through Aquaculture in 1977

by Robert Glenn Ketchum

In 1977, I was commissioned by Elisabeth Mann Borgese to help do research, interviews, and take photographs for a book she was writing about worldwide aquaculture. It would be published by Harry N. Abrams, one of the world’s premier publishing houses, famous for their beautiful books. It would also involve around-the-world travel to 8 countries, and some of the most remarkable places I would ever visit. SEAFARM: The Story of Aquaculture was a very successful publication featuring over 100 of my images, and an exhibit I assembled with support from Nikon, became a Smithsonian traveling exhibition for 6-yrs., viewed by over 6-million people.  ~Robert Glenn Ketchum

Friday, March 22, 2019

FISHFARMS:  Forming My World View through Aquaculture in 1977, #48:
Fish Farms #48:  Elisabeth, our Indian colleagues/guides, and I have driven around the southern tip of the Indian continent, and are now encountering numerous rural fishing villages on the shore of the Laccadive Sea. It is a long day ahead, so we stop regularly to walk through these communities and witness the buzz of daily activities. A few thatched roof huts and small shops are on the sand, at the edge of the palms, but many people live on their boats as well, using panels of thatch to cover themselves in bad weather. We are close to the equator and it is VERY hot and humid, even at night, so, as you can see, the majority of the people in these villages wear very few clothes, We (our group) on the other hand, look QUITE different, so everyone takes notice of our presence. Those that approach us are friendly and engaging, and most want to talk with us to learn why we are here. Above, is a father and his three sons, currently working industriously on repairing some of their fishing net. Their mother has gone to the spontaneous market that is occurring because a boat has just come in, bearing a large catch. What she can acquire will be their main meal of the day. All of them live in/on their boat - the one you see in this image!

photograph(s) © copyright, ROBERT GLENN KETCHUM, 2019, @RbtGlennKetchum @LittleBearProd #LittleBearProd

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Weekly Post, "My NEA Funded Artist-in-Residence at the University of Wisconsin" by Robert Glenn Ketchum

My NEA Funded Artist-in-Residence at the University of Wisconsin

by Robert Glenn Ketchum

In 1988, I was awarded an Artist-in-Residency at the University of Wisconsin-Waukesha, funded by a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts, and the Wisconsin Arts Board. This was a small body of work created over three years, and eventually exhibited once at the university. Some images have been printed, but most have never been seen. I hope you enjoy these photographs. I think they are among some of the most beautiful I have ever taken.  ~Robert Glenn Ketchum

Thursday, March 21, 2019

University of Wisconsin: Artist In Residence, #21:
Wisconsin #21:  My NEA residency in the Kettle Moraine of Wisconsin, only covers two fall seasons, and once I discover the graphics of the early morning frost, I want to take as much advantage of that seasonal phenomenon as possible. For my host, Marlin Johnson, that means I am probably awakening him with my dawn departures, but he loves the images, so he tolerates the disturbance. On truly cold nights, EVERYTHING at ground level gets frosted, sumac, grasses, and the lower branches of trees. Then, when the sun rises, it disappears VERY quickly in the first of the sun’s rays. My initial experiences making pictures are frustrating, because I have images evaporate before my lens, while I am trying to complete a shot. Eventually I learn to work in the shade, at the edge of sunlight, which often gives me the best of both worlds. I hope my variation on the theme of “lighting and weeds” is still visually interesting to you.

photograph(s) © copyright, ROBERT GLENN KETCHUM, 2019, @RbtGlennKetchum @LittleBearProd #LittleBearProd

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Weekly Post, "Sundance: Artist-In-Residence" by Robert Glenn Ketchum

Sundance:  Artist In Residence

by Robert Glenn Ketchum

From 1987-1989, Robert Redford invited me to become the first visual Artist-In-Residence at his newly established Sundance Institute, part of the community he was building around his recently purchased ski resort in Utah. The residency provided me with subject matter that produced some of the most significant images of my career, but importantly, it also afforded me my first aerial work, a platform that would become increasingly important throughout my life. A limited amount of these images were ever published, and NONE of the aerials ever were. The best will now appear, please enjoy!  ~Robert Glenn Ketchum

Thursday, March 21, 2019

SUNDANCE: Artist In Residence, #36:
Sundance #36:  Moving quickly from one location to another in Provo Canyon, trying to take advantage of the unusual conditions, I find this POV in walking distance from a parking plow-out on the highway. Apparently a lot of people come here to access the river for fishing, and if you look carefully, you can see footprints on the right shore, from someone fishing along it. I am still in a pocket of extreme cold as well, so even tough there is full sunlight, the ice crystal melt-out of the bushes and branches has not yet occurred. Best of all, I am legally parked, so I can sit here and take this in. Looking back at this moment, I realize my mantra of “seize the day and go out to shoot, regardless of the weather,” played out many times in my career. What is most striking, some of the worst days, produced some of the best shoots. Many times in the terrible conditions, going out, and staying out all day, produced not one, but several images important to my career. This, and the previous post, became two of my best selling prints, and this image was selected for embroidery when I was collaborating with an embroidery guild in Suzhou, China. I will show you that embroidery next week, and you can learn more about my 35yrs. of collaborative work in China, here.

photograph(s) © copyright, ROBERT GLENN KETCHUM, 2019, @RbtGlennKetchum @LittleBearProd #LittleBearProd

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Weekly Post, "Stoned Immaculate: A Trip in the Desert" by Robert Glenn Ketchum

STONED IMMACULATE:  A Trip in the Desert

by Robert Glenn Ketchum

As a young photographer, two places I “discovered” by chance greatly influenced both my photographic vision and my personal relationship with the greater planet. A previous blog, LIMEKILN, is the story of the first location. THIS is the second location which I discovered because my car broke down. As Jim Morrison/The Doors wrote, “Out here we is Stoned Immaculate!"

Wednesday, March 20, 2019

“Pi Mensae Lithostratigraphy"

circa 1985-1995

Stoned Immaculate, #123:

Immaculate, #123:  from the portfolio, STONED IMMACULATE

photograph(s) © copyright, ROBERT GLENN KETCHUM, 2019, @RbtGlennKetchum @LittleBearProd #LittleBearProd

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Weekly Post, "Arctic: At the Cutting Edge of Climate Change" by Robert Glenn Ketchum

ARCTIC:  At the Cutting Edge of Climate Change

by Robert Glenn Ketchum

In 1993, I began traveling to the Arctic. I have been across The Northwest Passage by yacht; to the North Pole twice; to little-visited Russian islands; and aboard research vessels in Greenland, Labrador, Newfoundland, and Baffin Island, taking the opportunity to visit Iqualuit, the capital of Nunavut, the recently created Inuit nation and territories.

Wednesday, March 20, 2019

ARCTIC:  At the Cutting Edge of Climate Change, #136:
ARCTIC, #136:   As we fly east, we pass two mesa-valley systems on Baffin Island, but the distant mesa on Bylot Island does not seem to get much closer. It is a fact that distance can be more difficult to judge in the Arctic because the air is so clear. At our present position, the cloud cover has broken a bit, and we are getting spotlights of sun swimming across the landscape. Numerous small streams flow beneath us, but just ahead, we will encounter a considerable river and valley, into which we will turn (right), beginning our attempt to work our way back to “Itasca” through the Baffin Island backcountry. In another day or two, “Itasca” will navigate past these bays, and turn into a passage between Baffin and Bylot Island, headed for the village of Pond Inlet. It is there that our helicopter pilot will disembark, and return to his regular territory of work around Yellowknife.

photograph(s) © copyright, ROBERT GLENN KETCHUM, 2019, @RbtGlennKetchum @LittleBearProd #LittleBearProd

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Weekly Post: THE TONGASS: Stop the Cut, There are Salmon in the Trees by Robert Glenn Ketchum

THE TONGASS:  Stop the Cut, There are Salmon in the Trees

by Robert Glenn Ketchum

In 1985, I began a 2-year commission to explore the Tongass rainforest, the largest forest in the United States Forest Service (USFS) system AND the largest temperate rainforest in the world. It was a unique, old-growth environment under siege from industrial logging. The resulting investigative book I published helped to pass the Tongass Timber Reform Bill, protect 1,000,000 acres of old-growth, and create 11 new wilderness areas. This is the story of how that was achieved.

Tuesday, March 19, 2019

THE TONGASS:  Stop the Cut, There are Salmon in the Trees, #134:
THE TONGASS, #134:  After paddling along the base of one of the most verdant wall sections in Rudyerd Bay - an astounding visual - I want to see the bigger picture, so in spite of the wind blowing into the fjord, I leave Philip and paddle out to attempt a more encompassing POV. Philip and I have been riding on an outgoing tide, and in picture-left, at the bottom, you can see the dark band in the rock that marks the high tide line. Kelp is visible below that now because the tide has been dropping during our several hours of paddling. The wall here is truly sheer, glacially carved, fjord, probably 1,500+ft. vertical. Yosemite-like, were it not for the astounding opulence of vegetation. It has become a part of architectural fashion these days (2019) to create “living” walls for houses and corporate buildings, but this is my first encounter with that idea 35yrs. earlier. To get these shots, I change lenses, which means I am NOT paddling, so I am losing ground rapidly, and my kayak is rotating around as I am trying to shoot. There is no “holding” my position. It is actually exhausting (and cold), so after a few frames, I rejoin Philip along our reasonable shelter at the base of the wall. We have a few more miles to paddle, and hours to expected boat pick-up, so we leisurely continue our traverse.

photograph(s) © copyright, ROBERT GLENN KETCHUM, 2019, @RbtGlennKetchum @LittleBearProd #LittleBearProd

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Weekly Post, High and Wild: Three Years of Wandering in the Wind Rivers

High and Wild: Three Years of Wandering in the Wind Rivers

by Robert Glenn Ketchum

After receiving my MFA from CalArts, I was invited by Bill Lund, Sharon Disney’s husband, to come stay at the families' Diamond-D Ranch in Dubois, Wyoming. Bill thought I might like to photograph in the nearby Wind River Mountains, which I did, backpacking through them extensively over the next three summers. Welcome to a world of big granite walls and huge alpine lakes!

Monday, March 18, 2019

High and Wild:  Three Years of Wandering in the Wind Rivers, #82:
Wind River, #82:  The camp Vicki and I have established at Wall Lake is deep into the shade of the evening, but the sunlight and passing weather still adorn the high peaks surrounding us. Weather in the Wind Rivers can be very location specific, and tonight is going to be one of those events. When Vicki and I retreated from the high ridge of our day hike, we did so in part because we did not want be in an exposed place when incoming weather from the west arrived. By the time we are back in our camp, that weather is blowing through, but at the moment, it is not over us, but rather just the peaks at the far end of our basin. From camp, the cloud and light show is dramatic, as once again the “fortress” wall at the headwaters of Pole Creek (post #77) puts on another spectacular display.

photograph(s) © copyright, ROBERT GLENN KETCHUM, 2019, @RbtGlennKetchum @LittleBearProd #LittleBearProd

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Weekly Post, "The Higher You Get, The Higher You Get" by Robert Glenn Ketchum

The Higher You Get, The Higher You Get

by Robert Glenn Ketchum

Growing up my parents had a home near Sun Valley, Idaho. It was there that I learned to ski. Over many years I befriended members of the Decker Flats Climbing and Frisbee Club, with whom I had both life, and art-forming outdoor experiences. I had my camera, and these are my adventures.  Enjoy!!  ~Robert Glenn Ketchum

Monday, March 18, 2019

The Higher You Get, The Higher You Get - Sun Valley and the DFC&FC, #150: DFCFC, #150:  The last two posts show the view of the Old Hyndman-Cobb Peak panorama that our dining bench faces. Off to the left of our encampment, however, this looms prominently above us,..Hyndman Peak. From our POV, it is QUITE impressive. I should also point out the pale “lines” in the snow at the middle-bottom of this shot. Those are ski tracks. Chris DuPont and his girlfriend, Mila, could not wait for tomorrow to arrive to say they skied Hyndman, so between the finishing of the snow cave, and the start of dinner, they climb up the slope into a basin above us, and shred some great parallel in a descent back to camp. Chris is a very good skier, but has never done anything quite like this, so he is pretty jacked up, and REALLY excited about tomorrow. Our other guest, Jennifer, has settled into life in camp, and seems to be warm, comfortable and less shocked about where she is. However, when we get in the snow cave, that shifts a bit. In the cave, we party for awhile, then finally blow out the candles. About ten minutes go by, when I hear Jennifer quietly whispering to Gordon, “Gordy, are we going to die?” To which Gordon responds, she has nothing to worry about, the cave is safe and warm. He also suggests, she might stay warmer, if she moves more closely towards him, which she does. Nice! I on the other hand (pun intended), I deal with my burned palm by thrusting it out of my sleeping bag and onto the ice floor of the cave, when ever the throbbing wakes me up. Eventually, we all sleep surprisingly well, especially considering it is now -15˙ outside.

photograph(s) © copyright, ROBERT GLENN KETCHUM, 2019, @RbtGlennKetchum @LittleBearProd #LittleBearProd

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Weekly Post, "Adventuring on the Yakutat Forelands: Bowing before St. Elias" by Robert Glenn Ketchum

Adventuring on the Yakutat Forelands - Bowing before St. Elias

by Robert Glenn Ketchum

The Yakutat Forelands are where the Tongass rainforest and the Chugach forest to the north meet. It is also home to many large glaciers, a stunning coastline, the huge Alsek-Tatshenshini river, and Icy Bay, which sits at the foot of Mount St. Elias, the greatest vertical rise from sea level in the world. There is a lot of powerful energy out here.

Wednesday, October 24, 2018

Adventuring on the Yakutat Forelands - Bowing before St. Elias, #94:
The Yakutat Forelands, #94:  The spectacle of the exaggerated, and very visible, changes in the parts of Icy Bay we actually explored, is quite sobering to all of us. As the plane climbs and heads for the coast, we fall silent as each of us ponders the numerous times we have encountered life-threatening circumstances in just these past 10-days. This was NOT a casual Alaskan kayaking adventure. Our pilot suggests we have been in the middle “of an epic weather event,” and he acknowledges that he wondered what he would find in flying in to pick us up. He also notes that all flights in and out of Yakutat have been grounded for the better part of the last week, so he was not even sure if he would be allowed to come for us. As our flight path hits the coast, where we will turn south, the large river pouring out of the bay has flushed so much mud and silt into the Pacific, that it is actually changing the color of the ocean water for many square miles. Well, it IS Alaska! Go big, or go home. We have done one, and now we are going to do the other. I want to sleep on a mattress. We have all come to bow before St. Elias, and now suitably humbled, we retreat to play another day.

photograph(s) © copyright, Robert Glenn Ketchum, 2018, @RbtGlennKetchum, @LittleBearProd #LittleBearProd

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