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Early Work: Pueblo Indians
In 1927, Adams visited New Mexico and was attracted to the region’s dramatic landscapes and Native American cultures. He returned to New Mexico several times, and, in 1930, he published Taos Pueblo, a luxury book with photographs of the famous pueblo (village) north of Santa Fe. New Mexican author Mary Austin wrote a short text to accompany Adams’ photographs. Adams also photographed at other pueblos in the area. His soft-focus images of Indian dancers, emphasizing the costumes and the interrelationships of the dancers, evoke the rhythmic music that pervaded these events. Adams later described this as his first “visualization”—a print, fully anticipated before he tripped the shutter, which captured the emotional impact of the scene rather than the way it actually looked.  Beginning in the mid-1890s, when the railroad brought many visitors to the region, Indian dances became a popular attraction. Adams photographed and depicted dances as religious ceremonies rather than entertainment. Ansel Adams, American; Eagle Dance, Tesuque Pueblo, New Mexico, 1929; gelatin silver print. The Lane Collection. ©2007 The Ansel Adams Publishing Rights Trust. Left corner image: Ansel Adams, American; Wind, Juniper Tree, Yosemite National Park, ca. 1919; gelatin silver print. The Lane Collection. ©2007 The Ansel Adams Publishing Rights Trust. |