english research paper

Jerry Uelsmann is a different kind of artist. He is what many people would call a master
at his work. He creates beautiful photos that make it looks as though they where taken from a
perfect scenery. He designs photographs by mixing more than one picture into them. He was one
of the first people to ever use Photoshop. Almost all of his photographs are all made of more
than one negative and he has many photographs with no titles. He was born in Detroit, Michigan
on June 11, 1934. In 1957 he graduated from Rochester Institute of Technology in the first four
year B.F.A degree program in photography. In 1967 Uelsmann received the Guggenheim
Fellowship award (“Reconciliations” 1-22). His strongest influences where Minor White and
Ralph Hattersley. The greatest thing Uelsmann claimed to have learned from White was that his
“camera had not only the ability to record images but also that it did have the potential of
transcending the initial subject matter." In 1957 Uelsmann graduated from Rochester Institute
and married his first wife who was Marylinn Kamischke of Detroit. Photography Annual was his
first publication and it also happened in 1957. Uelsmann also joined the staff at the University of
Florida (Legends OnlineParagraph1-4).



Jerry Uelsmann is an artist who was one of the very first people to combine
photographs while using Photoshop. He is a master printer and he produces hundreds of
photographs using negatives and other techniques. All of his images are very dark and
gloomy and many have to do with immortal figures. Many of them are of angels and gods
and other things like that. He also includes different pictures of naturalistic things as well,
such as rocks, rivers, oceans, and trees. Many of his works don’t have titles and the ones
that do have titles usually just say what is in the pictures. It seems to be a reoccurring
theme throughout his work. His different works portray the universe as being very
mysterious and somehow connected with immortal life. They are incredibly fascinating
because he some how ties in the immortals with nature like in one photo of a women
laying down and her top is immortal and the other half is a beautiful picture of a rock
canyon. When he begins a piece of work he never has one set initiative, he basically goes
along with whatever happens happens. It is just like how many people say how they
should just like nature take its course he allows for his own mind to just expand in what
he is doing. Usually in Sweden . He is also in thousands of exhibits as well (Legends
Online.Paragraph1-4).



Many of Uelsmann’s works have many different things in common such as them
all being in black and white. It gives a certain mystery to all of his photos. One of the
most interesting photographs is called symbolic mutation and it was made in 1961. Its
such an interesting piece. It’s of a hand and than a face print on the fist of it. It creates this
alter imaginary picture and yet it looks so real. Just like in another of his pictures which is
Untitled and it was made in 1992. This is a photo of a pair of shoes and a window in the
distance. There are clouds around the window and it looks as though it is from heaven.
Both of these pictures have some kind of imaginary image to them. Like the hand has the
face being on the hand and the other one has the shoes leading up to heaven. Another
picture that is similar to these ones is one of my favorite ones. Another picture is one
called Meditation mystery and it was made in 2001.This one is of a latter leading from a
whole in water up to a light in the sky. It’s as though it is leading up to the gates of heaven
and its so interesting how all of them have the same reoccurring theme throughout all of
the photos (Legends Online Paragraphs 5-7).



Jerry Uelsmann is an artist who was one of the first to ever use photo shop. His
images are dark and seem to have a lot of different hidden meanings and emotions
throughout them. Many of them are depressing almost and many are also untitled. Almost
none of his photos have an color to them. It isn’t said why the photos have no color but it
gives them a more gloomy and sullen look. One of his famous photos that fits this
description is called the Tree House. It is a picture of a house that was built into a tree
stump. It shows so many different things about the artist like how he is very different
from a lot of the other artists and he is able to make incredible pieces of art from two
completely different photos. “Uelsmann is able to link opposites in ways that see
credible”(“Reconciliations” Pg. 43 Paragraph 1). This quote was saying that the artist can link
two completely different photos into one and make is seem as though they where never two
photos. In the background of the photo there is another house in the distance and it looks as
though the house that is mainly portrayed in this picture is lonely and has no other thing around it
much like how if there is one tree in a huge field it looks very lonely because there is nothing
else surrounding it. His photos like this one seem so realistic it is hard to believe that he merged
these to negatives together. “To amaze myself”(“Reconciliations” Pg. 53 Paragraph 4), this quote
shows that not only is his audience taken back by his magnificent art but so is he. He amazes
himself everyday he steps into the dark room and comes out with a new photo. In the photograph
of the Tree House there is also a town in the very far distance. The tree branches come off
toward the edges of the photo making it looks as though the picture was taken and not photo
shopped. The dark Tree house is set apart from both the towns and the other trees and yet in his
he makes sure that it is made center and that all the attention is on that tree. The house is very
dark and the windows seem to lead into complete darkness. There is no door leading in or out of
the house almost as if there is no way to escape or to gain access to the house. Its as though the
house is trapped in its own world much like how many people feel that way as well. The tree
house in the center of the photo is different from all of the houses that surround it because it has
been built out of a tree stump it shows that it is very unique and maybe that is why all the
attention is drawn onto the house itself. In this picture there is no real beginning and no end just
like in more of his paintings you have to search for the deeper meaning behind the photo.



Another picture that seemed interesting to me is a picture of a young woman in it. It is
posted in a gallery and it is named “When a Women Turns to Water.” The photo shows the
women’s head and the beginning of her torso but as you look at the rest of the photo her body
slowly turns into a beautiful river. The woman looks as she is completely at peace with the world
and with nature as well. It also looks as though she is completely relaxed and nothing could
disturb her. The river is gently running through her body and out toward a beautiful landscape.
There are beautiful snow covered mountains and the river is running directly through the middle
of them creating a perfect valley between them. This photo is much like a lot of his personal
photos. Man of the photos show something with immortal figure like this woman may be and
with nature and how they connect with each other. “If I could only have been there when he
called- perhaps he would have known what I was up to” (“Reconciliations” Pg. 24 Paragraph 2).
This quote fits perfectly with this picture because many people wonder how Uelsmann can come
up with these different photos and not have a n alternative motive. Many of his friends have tried
to figure out what it is that drives him to combine these completely different photos. Its
incredible to see how he can illustrate such a perfect picture from two completely different
pictures.



Another picture that is in Uelsmann’s exhibition is called Time Remembers. It
was made in 1999. It is a photo of a clock in the palm of a person’s hand. There is also a women
looking as though she is remembering something. She has black hair and is wearing very dark
clothing. Her arms are crossed as she leans on something that doesn’t appear visible. The clock
in the palm is almost landing on 3 o clock. It makes me wonder why it is one that specific time
maybe something happened in his life at that specific time. There is also a picture of a cement
passage way and there is an image showing though the cement walls. It looks as though it is
showing a passage way to a different time period. There seems to be broken cement structures
and other this like that. It makes me wonder what may have happened in Uelsmann’s life that
maybe he wanted to go back to and revisit. Maybe this photo is a way of remembering that
specific memory. It is interesting to see how he combines all of these photos to make a memory.
This photo is a little bit different than all of the other photos in his exhibits but it also has a lot of
things in common with the others. Like the others it has no actual reason for it. “Uelsmann is
able to link opposites in ways that seem credible ” (“Jerry N(orman) Uelsmann” Pg.2 ). It
seems that even other people agree with the fact that Uelsmann has a great talent and even
though he uses different techniques he still can manage to have a great masterpiece. The
picture of the time and the women shows how different his works are and how he can
make two complete opposites combine and make something of it.




Another picture that is even more famous than any of the other four is a painting
that is Untitled and made in 1975. This picture is a perfect example of two complete
opposites being put together into one. It is a photo of a man in water. It looks as though
he is walking toward the open door. At the end of the river is two doors and one is open
and the other is closed. The man is walking toward the door that is slightly open. It is
complete darkness through the door. That is maybe why the man seems to be almost
hesitating at the beginning of the open door. There is also plants and different ivy looking
things all around the two doors it makes it look even more mysterious than without it.
The is also a cement wall bordering the rives and there is grass on the other sides of the
river. It looks as though this is just a little bit of water surrounded by everything else that
is dry. “I’m trying to create something that’s visually stimulating, exciting, that I have
never done before but no same visual to cohesive for me, has its own short life”
(“Reconciliations” Pg.23 Paragraph 1). This quote seems to explain a lot of things about
Uelsmann himself. It shows that all of his works mean something to him and there not
just a piece of artwork for people to look at. It is actually something that has a life to it
and all of his photos seem to have a certain thing about them that sets them apart from all
of the other ones. This photo is one of many that combine two complete opposites and
allow it to complete one perfect photo.





The last photo that seems to tie all of Uelsmann’s works together is one called
Apocalypse II. This photo was made between 1967 and 1976. This picture is of several different
images made into one. There is a fire place in the picture and it shows the wood
inside the fireplace and there is a clock above the fireplace to. There is a rug in the picture
and there is a desk on top of the rug as well. On the rug there seems to be plants like in
many of his other photos. There is no roof on the building in the picture and it look as
though it is leading into an open sky. Like the sky is the limit. The desk has a picture or a
painting of a man and it looks as though he is walking into something. The photo itself
seems as though it is a dream of Uelsmann’s. It shows a man in the drawing and it seems
like its himself in the picture. There is an open sky much like how his mind tends to work
and there is a man inside the picture making a journey much like how Uelsmann’s life is
nothing but a journey. This picture also shows several different negatives all combined
into one which he is a master at. The photo looks as though it was an actual photo of a
scene and it looks as though there not all different photos. It makes the photo more
interesting.





One picture that seems to be completely different than all of the other pictures in
his collections is one called Undiscovered Self and it was made in 1999. It is a photo that
has a bunch of papers spread all across the floor on the pages themselves are different
parts of what appears to be a women and a man. There is two different faces and different
parts of the bodies and different hands on each of the different papers. This picture is
different from all of the other photos because it seems more mysterious than the others.
The others seem to have a purpose or a different meaning but this picture it seems as
though Uelsmann has a part of himself that is undiscovered like many people have
sometimes a part that they keep hidden from the world. It makes the artist seem much
more mysterious because maybe even he doesn’t know his true self. Maybe he is battling
with self fulfillment. Even though almost all of the photos are connected by things in
nature and immortal things this photo is different. It doesn’t show anything from nature in
the pages that are on the floor and there seems to be nothing immortal about the different
people in the pages. It looks as though this photo was one Uelsmann made to describe
himself and how he actually is someone who is undiscovered to both the world and
himself.




In conclusion, Jerry Uelsmann is a master artist. He was one of the very first people to
ever use photo shop and he uses it perfectly. His images are all combined from
several of negatives and they are all merged into one. All of them look as though they are
completely real and its like they are not different negatives. “That is where all of my
energies go” (PDN Legends Online). His whole life is based on his artwork he has had
many jobs that involve him combining these images and also teaching people how to
combine these images. He uses different techniques and he has perfected all of them so
that his images look absolutely perfect. All of his images share a common theme which is
that they are all developed from several different negatives and it allows his audience and
buyers to see a perfect image the way he envisioned it. “He uses only his own negatives
from the pictures he shoots” (“Reconciliations” Pg. 23 Paragraph 2). This quote was
stated in an essay that is featured in one Uelsmann’s books. It shows that he is completely
unique in his photos and he refuses to even use a negative that was take by a different
photographer it makes his work more meaningful to both the viewers and to him. He is a
master at his work and he is a magnificent artist.