Edward Weston

mounted, signed, titled, and editioned '14/50' in pencil on the mount, numbered '15S' and dated in pencil on the reverse, 1931, no. 14 in a projected edition of 50 (Seeing Straight, pl. 44, this print; Conger 655; Supreme Instants, pl. 90)

The photographer to Johan Hagemeyer

By descent to David Hagemeyer, the photographer's son

Gift of David and Jeanne Hagemeyer to the Center for Creative Photography, Tucson, 1975

Sotheby's New York, 17 October 2006, Sale 8227, Lot 107

The Oakland Museum, Seeing Straight: The f.64 Revolution in Photography, October 1992 - January 1993; and traveling to the Center for Creative Photography, Tucson, September - November 1993

This photograph, on a semi-glossy paper, is in very good condition. In raking light, a number of pencil-point-sized impressions and a small amount of faint surface scuffing is visible. The photograph is mounted to a slick off-white board with a matte surface on the reverse. The mount is foxed overall. Full literature references are as follows: Therese Thau Heyman, ed., 'Seeing Straight: The f.64 Revolution in Photography' (The Oakland Museum, 1992, in conjunction with the exhibition), pl. 44 (this print) Other prints of this image: Conger 655 Beaumont Newhall, 'Supreme Instants: The Photographs of Edward Weston' (Center for Creative Photography, 1986, in conjunction with the exhibition), pl. 90 Ben Maddow, 'Edward Weston: Fifty Years' (Aperture, 1973), p. 135 Theodore E. Stebbins, Jr., Karen Quinn, and Leslie Furth, 'Edward Weston: Photography and Modernism' (Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, 1999), fig. 18 James L. Enyeart, 'Edward Weston's California Landscapes' (Boston, 1984), p. 49 Nancy Newhall, ed., 'The Daybooks of Edward Weston, Volume II. California' (Aperture, 1973), pl. 29 Merle Armitage, 'The Art of Edward Weston' (New York, 1932), p. 32
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

Shell and Rock Arrangement was one of nine images by Weston exhibited in the original 1932 Group f.64 exhibition at the M. H. de Young Memorial Museum, San Francisco.  The exhibition included works by Ansel Adams, Imogen Cunningham, and Alma Lavenson, among other members of Group f.64.  This show, the first and only that the group would organize, articulated the members' unified approach to the photographic medium.  Shell and Rock Arrangement, with its sharp focus, strong detail, and great depth of field, illustrates the new, straight style that was the underlying principle of Group f.64.

The print offered here was chosen by Therese Thau Heyman for her 1992 exhibition, Seeing Straight, a re-creation of the spirit of the original 1932 show.