This is when I love photography; when the medium born to tell a story, doesn’t. No other art form is capable of producing this kind of exchange—giving an expectation of an exact record, only to strip that preconception away, leaving form in its place.

In 2012, I saw an exhibition of platinum/palladium prints by master photographer, George Tice.  I met George in 2005 when I took a Master Printing workshop with him at what was the Maine Photographic Workshops.  He is for me, hands down, the best photographic printmaker I’ve ever encountered.  He liked to teach outdoors. I remember holding one of his platinum prints in my hands—without the separation of glass; without glare; without the formality of gallery walls surrounding me; and within the soft Maine light.  The tonal range, the articulation of space, the depth of the detail combine perfectly—transforming the original capture into something else. It was the kind of haptic experience that seems less frequent now when encountering art.

George Tice, Aquatic Plants #8, Helmetta, NJ, 1967, Platinum/ palladium print.
Courtesy the artist and Nailya Alexander Gallery, New York.

I spent a long time looking at this photograph of lily pads. I left myself in it. When I emerged, I realized that I connect with a photograph when reminded that this medium, invented to perfectly depict truth, is capable of shedding that expectation, expressing instead, an abstract rendering of the world. Lily pads become circles; reeds become lines; reflections become brush strokes; and all of what I think I know—is gone. For a few moments, the burden of association is lost and I am floating alone in depths of tone.

This is when I love photography; when the medium born to tell a story, doesn’t. No other art form is capable of producing this kind of exchange—giving an expectation of an exact record, only to strip that preconception away, leaving form in its place.

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— Lauren Henkin

About George Tice:

Born in 1938, George Tice is widely celebrated for his photographs that span six decades. In addition to being known for his lengthy study of New Jersey’s urban landscape, Tice is also recognized as a master printer; he printed for artists like Edward Steichen as well as for the portfolios of such artists as Frederick H. Evans and Edward Weston. In 1972, he had a one-man show at the Metropolitan Museum of Art and in 2002, ICP exhibited George Tice: Urban Landscapes, a series he began in the 1960s. His work is represented in over one hundred museum collections, including MoMA, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Art Institute of Chicago, the J. Paul Getty Museum and the Newark Museum. Tice has received fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts, the National Media Museum (UK), the New Jersey State Council on the Arts, as well as commissions from The Field Museum of Natural History, the Houston Museum of Fine Arts, and the Museum of Modern Art. He has published eighteen books of photographs with more to come.

George’s most recent book, Seldom Seen was published in 2013 by Brilliant Graphics and includes photographs that haven’t been published before. The book can be viewed or acquired at photo-eye. Watch a video of George talking about the book, and his perspective on publishing here.

A film by Peter Bosco, Bruce Wodder and Douglas Underdahl, George Tice: Seeing Beyond the Moment, documents Tice’s work and includes interviews with him at the locales of some of his most famous images. Tice also leads the viewer through the process of making five new photographs, from location to darkroom to finished print. A preview of the film can be seen here.

In corresponding with George on this piece, he noted, “My night skies in the scans are not as smooth as they are in the original prints.”