Edward Weston: Portrait of the Young Man as an Artist is on view August 22 through November 16, 2018, in the Harnett Museum of Art. The exhibition presents more than 120 photographs by Edward Weston (American, 1886-1958). Ranging in date from 1903 to 1946, the exhibition includes his earliest photographs with later works from his career, demonstrating similarities as well as refinement in subject matter, style, and aesthetic exploration. Comparing Weston’s photographs created when he was a teenager through his early twenties with his later masterworks, the exhibition demonstrates the evolution of his singular vision, finding essential forms in his subjects and perfecting his hallmark sense of composition.

In 1902, at the age of sixteen, Weston took up photography in Highland, Park, Illinois, when his father gave him a Bull’s Eye No. 2 camera. He moved to Tropico, California, in 1907, where he constructed his first studio and began his pursuit of becoming a professional photographer. In 1929, Weston moved to Carmel and became one of the founding members of Group f/64 along with Ansel Adams, Willard Van Dyke, and Imogen Cunningham.

The early works on view in the exhibition are from photograph albums compiled by Weston’s first wife, Flora Chandler Weston, and later given to their children. The subjects are primarily family members and landscapes. The later photographs are lent by the Monterey Museum of Art and Monterey Peninsula College, both in California, and the selection includes several of Weston’s iconic images such as “Bertha, Glendale,” 1927; “Pepper,” 1930; “Dunes, Oceano,” 1936; and “Nude, New Mexico,” 1937.

The exhibition was curated by Graham Howe and inaugurated at the Monterey Museum of Art as an exhibition originated and toured by Curatorial Assistance Traveling Exhibitions with loans from the Monterey Museum of Art and the Bolt/Chandler family. The exhibition and programs at the University of Richmond Museums are made possible in part with funds from the Louis S. Booth Arts Fund. A catalogue, published by Merrell Publishers, London and New York is available.