Also "crooked"/ Re: Alternatives at Rochester Re: George Eastman Housegrant

[Judy Seigel <jseigel@panix.com>]

On Wed, 15 Nov 2006, Christina Z. Anderson wrote:
> Judy, I may have to pick your brain in the coming months--who practiced gum 
> when--and it is a lot easier to find that for the 1850's-1920 because of the 
> wonderful records of the BJP and books written, which usually mention the 
> names of the greats.  But I'm very interested in the forerunners of alt 
> during the late 60's early 70's.  I know Betty Hahn is in there, as is Bea 
> Nettles.  Todd Walker did gum, but it seems solarization and silkscreen are 
> what I see of his work nowadays.  But who else who did not get such public 
> acclaim who was working hard at the process??  When did you start doing gum? 
> Those kinds of things. I am interested in the continuum of gum from its 
> inception, and these pockets of "blips" on the gum screen.
> Chris
Chris, These folks were in the books of the time, which was how I knew 
about many of them -- I even have some of those books & when I get a 
handle on the present chaos, I'll take a look... But, for what it's worth, 
Bea Nettles was for most of the time doing Kwikprint, and if she did gum 
(AFAIK) that was only after her divorce from one of the persons in some 
way connected with Kwikprint, or like that. (Second-hand info which it's 
probably wrong to put into "print", but I figure that's history too & if 
I'm wrong it's the best way to get corrected.)

Another name that comes to mind is Robert Fichter, an excellent artist and 
(if memory serves, tho it gets more & more indolent with time) clever in 
many media, including cyano, in combo with graphics... last I heard he was 
teaching at a Florida University...

I don't have time, strength or mindpower to do this now since "the" book 
(which has nary a gum print) is in its medium throes (more about which 
soon), but the term "crooked photography" was AFAIK actually used by 
Steiglitz about turn of the 20th century, to distinguish it from 
"straight" photography, tho I thought I myself had coined it, drat ! (Life 
is sooooo like that.) I'd initially planned to call Post-Factory something 
along the lines of "The Journal of Crooked Photography," but figured that 
would attract lawyers & other malfactors, so didn't...

Jean Locey, was another swell gum printer, tho she didn't stay there 
long... and Christine Osinski definitely one of the best circa 1982, (now 
chair of photography at Cooper Union) & first I know who did color 
separated gum.

Chris is in Post-Factory, as are several/many of the others, but my index 
data base is as cranky as I am right now so I defer details...

It figures, however, that Visual Studies Workshop will be  a much better 
source on recent "alt" printers in every non-silver medium than GEH.

Joan Harrison is another GREAT gum printer, and then most especially Sarah 
Van Keuren -- whose prints are as sublime -- and original -- as her manual 
(which I reviewed in P-F a couple of issues back, an extended version of 
which is supposedly upcoming in Photo Review... Sarah teaches gum at 
University of the Arts in Philadelphia -- I did a crit in her class last 
year and must reveal that her students were merely fabulous -- as was 
their entire lab/studio setup.

Again, much/most of this info is in Post-Factory, and it's really dumb of 
me to be repeating it at 3:57 AM, but it's so nice to talk gum for a 
change I can't help it... Meanwhile, I do think that anyone contemplating 
gum or doing it, or even interested, ought to get Sarah's manual on the 
topic.  It's poetry. I'll post info on it within forseeable future...

best,

Judy