Spring Break
A day with John Sexton
Barometer photographer spends day with world-renowned photographer John Sexton, whose work is on display in Fairbanks through April 29
Jeff Wick
Issue date: 4/10/09 Section: Diversions
Art students here at OSU are very lucky. The department never fails to attract great artists and get them to exhibit their art in our gallery in Fairbanks Hall as well as give lectures to students. Sometimes when these artists visit, a select few students will get to go to lunch or coffee with these artists and have a real, one-on-one encounter with them. These lucky students are given the time to just chat with the artist. On Monday, I had this honor. Five other students and I got the privilege to sit down for lunch with John Sexton and his wife, Anne.
For all of you who don't know John Sexton, you should Google him or just go check out his work in Fairbanks if you get a chance. He is a fantastic photographer who works with large format cameras, usually 4-by-5 or 8-by-10 view cameras. He was taught at workshops by Ansel Adams and he even worked with him for three and a half years as his personal assistant. When you look at his landscape works, you can definitely see Adams' influence (if you've ever seen an Adams' print), but Sexton also has his own style. Sexton's prints are just really beautiful.
Just sitting down and talking to someone who has such a passion for what he does do and is so successful at it can be such an amazing experience, as this was. John talked about how he once got to meet Edward Weston shortly before Weston died, and he said how it was an unforgettable experience for him, and probably an unmemorable experience for Weston. I kind of feel like that may have been what my day with John was like. Not that he doesn't care, but that he travels so much that we were probably just another school and another group of students for John, and yet I'm sure I will remember the experience for the rest of my life.
After lunch, John came and gave my Art 441 class a special lecture. This again was a small group; he lectured to a group of only about 12 students. He showed us prints that weren't hung up in his show in Fairbanks gallery and talked about photo techniques as well as his experiences. He even showed us Ansel Adams prints. John told us how he has heard people say that Ansel Adams' prints were larger than life. Physically that's not possible - they're actually quite small compared to reality. What is larger than life is the feeling that you get when you look at the print - something so beautiful and technically amazing that it just takes your breath away. It is a feeling that truly cannot be described unless you have seen one of the prints. This is the feeling I got when looking at John Sexton's prints. John also told us how you can get all kinds of inspiration from looking at a really good print - not only the kind of inspiration that we all normally think of, but the physical definition that's in the dictionary: "to breathe in; to inspire." That feeling that causes you to quickly breathe in and catch your breath, that feeling of inspiration; it's an amazing feeling. If you haven't gotten it by looking at a truly beautiful photograph, hopefully some of you have experienced something that has made you inspire.
For all of you who don't know John Sexton, you should Google him or just go check out his work in Fairbanks if you get a chance. He is a fantastic photographer who works with large format cameras, usually 4-by-5 or 8-by-10 view cameras. He was taught at workshops by Ansel Adams and he even worked with him for three and a half years as his personal assistant. When you look at his landscape works, you can definitely see Adams' influence (if you've ever seen an Adams' print), but Sexton also has his own style. Sexton's prints are just really beautiful.
Just sitting down and talking to someone who has such a passion for what he does do and is so successful at it can be such an amazing experience, as this was. John talked about how he once got to meet Edward Weston shortly before Weston died, and he said how it was an unforgettable experience for him, and probably an unmemorable experience for Weston. I kind of feel like that may have been what my day with John was like. Not that he doesn't care, but that he travels so much that we were probably just another school and another group of students for John, and yet I'm sure I will remember the experience for the rest of my life.
After lunch, John came and gave my Art 441 class a special lecture. This again was a small group; he lectured to a group of only about 12 students. He showed us prints that weren't hung up in his show in Fairbanks gallery and talked about photo techniques as well as his experiences. He even showed us Ansel Adams prints. John told us how he has heard people say that Ansel Adams' prints were larger than life. Physically that's not possible - they're actually quite small compared to reality. What is larger than life is the feeling that you get when you look at the print - something so beautiful and technically amazing that it just takes your breath away. It is a feeling that truly cannot be described unless you have seen one of the prints. This is the feeling I got when looking at John Sexton's prints. John also told us how you can get all kinds of inspiration from looking at a really good print - not only the kind of inspiration that we all normally think of, but the physical definition that's in the dictionary: "to breathe in; to inspire." That feeling that causes you to quickly breathe in and catch your breath, that feeling of inspiration; it's an amazing feeling. If you haven't gotten it by looking at a truly beautiful photograph, hopefully some of you have experienced something that has made you inspire.
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