FULL IS NOT HEAVY AS EMPTY

Ruth Asawa, Imogen Cunningham, romance and a review

THE BREATH OF LIFE

I’ve heard it said that Slavic people are internal optimists masquerading as pessimists, as a Slav myself, I find this to be true. All this to say, I’m also, at my core, a true romantic. There’s something romantic about your lover’s morning breath, staying out late with friends, and walking around at night with a breeze that smells of the Arizona desert. Romance can be found everywhere in life — if you have the heart to see it.

EVIL IS EVERYWHERE AROUND YOU

This piece was initially intended to focus on Ruth Asawa and her connection to Black Mountain College, but after many weeks of strenuous research, it has evolved into something much more. It’s a story of an enduring friendship and respect that transcends barriers of age, race, and medium—the relationship between Ruth Asawa and Imogen Cunningham.

In 1942, Asawa and her family were separated into different Japanese internment camps due to isolation policies for Japanese-Americans mandated by the U.S. government during World War II. At the Rohwer Relocation Center in Arkansas, Asawa was taught how to draw by other detainees who had worked for Disney Studios before being interned. Asawa recounts a story of having her fortune told at the camp, and it was at that moment she decided to become an artist rather than tend to the family farm in rural northern California.

Asawa enrolled at Black Mountain College in 1946, where she was mentored by and studied under the legendary painter Josef Albers and designer Buckminster Fuller. After a trip to Mexico in 1947, where she observed women weaving baskets out of wire, Asawa abandoned drawing and began creating looped wire sculptures. She said this about that experience:

I was interested in it because of the economy of a line, making something in space, enclosing it without blocking it out. It's still transparent. I realized that if I was going to make these forms, which interlock and interweave, it can only be done with a line because a line can go anywhere.

She would relocate with her husband back to San Fransico with their first 2 children. 

Imogen Cunningham graduated from the University of Washington in 1907 with a degree in chemistry. Over the next 15 years, she married, moved to San Francisco, had three children, and became a sought-after pictorial portrait photographer. Between 1923 and 1925, Cunningham conducted an in-depth study of the Magnolia flower, which led her to found the California Horticultural Society. Her detailed and clear images were widely used by horticulturists and scientists in their studies.

In 1930, Cunningham shifted her focus to the human form, particularly the hands of artists and musicians. She began a career with Vanity Fair magazine, photographing stars without makeup, including Gertrude Stein and Martha Graham. She continued working for Vanity Fair until its publication ceased in 1936.

As Cunningham transitioned from pictorialism to sharp-focus photography, she joined Ansel Adams, Edward Weston, and Willard Van Dyke in forming Group f/64. This group advocated for "pure" or "straight" photography, rejecting soft, pictorial styles in favor of detailed images created with small apertures (f/64 being the smallest). Cunningham noted that the group was defining American photography, particularly in a Western American context, emphasizing a commitment to reality and authenticity.

In 1950, Cunningham and Asawa met in San Francisco. Cunningham was immediately taken with Asawa, recognizing her as a genius. Cunningham spent the rest of her life photographing Asawa amidst her brilliant sculptures. Asawa's gaze into the camera, filled with seriousness and intensity, often made it difficult to maintain eye contact, yet one couldn’t look away. Cunningham saw in Asawa the same qualities she saw in herself, and their careers became deeply intertwined. Cunningham's best work featured Asawa at the center, and Asawa’s work in the photographs became her most sought-after.

For Ruth Asawa, creating art proved to be more than merely producing objects; it was a transformative process and practice, not only for the artist but for everyone who witnessed it. It’s something to be a part of everyone’s life. Her wire sculptures hang gracefully from their posts, creating forms so delicate that it’s hard to believe our bodies are capable of such creation. Imogen Cunningham recognized this and ensured that everyone who witnessed the sheer ferocity of what is and what could be – will.

WHAT IS TO BE DONE

I recently finished the 2012 novella A Short Stay in Hell by Steven L. Peck, an exploration of theology, philosophy, and the human condition. Without giving too much away, the book follows a Mormon man who awakens in a hell created by a god he has never heard of. He must spend eternity in a vast library of books, and if he can find the book containing his life story, he will be allowed to leave. Throughout his journey, he grapples with his surroundings and struggles to reconcile his earthly understanding of time, physical space, and love.

The story is truly captivating and is an examination of the human condition to which I believe Peck excels at examining the contradicting feelings of our finite earthly existence. The novella suffers somewhat from its length. With an additional 100 pages, Peck could have further developed the story, potentially elevating it to, what I believe would be, a classic. While I wouldn’t say this is essential reading for everyone, I believe those who read it will gain a unique and thought-provoking perspective. 

FOR YOU, FOR ME, NOT FOR EVERYONE

As the music loudly played at work today, I was reminded that not everywhere, or everything, is for everyone – and that’s okay—a great understanding to have. 

THINKING LATE THOUGHTS

Fiona Apple performing The First Taste live at the Electric Ballroom in Tempe, 1997.