Johsel Namkung: a retrospective - book review

[QT Luong]

I have to admit I had never heard of Johsel Namkung before. My curiosity was picked after I heard that his 1978 exhibit at the Seattle Art Museum was what made Art Wolfe realize that nature photography could be art - an event he evokes in his foreword.

"Johsel Namkung: a retrospective" is, as implied by the title, a long-due retrospective book of the work of this little-known Korean-American master, published by Cosgrove Editions. The production is absolutely first-rate, making it one of the most impressive books of color photography I have seen (I've seen many). It clearly surpasses Cosgrove's previous efforts, such as Art Wolfe's superbly produced "Edge of the Earth, Corner of the Sky". For the publisher, Dick Busher - a polymath in the photography world, having assumed many roles, and a long-time friend of Namkung - it was clearly a labor of love, in which he spared no expenses. The book's high price ($175 for the trade edition) is not unreasonable considering the production quality and small run. This is a very large color book of size 16.5" x 13.25", which weights six pounds and half - for comparison, Alec Soth's "Looking for Love, 1996", a book with undistinguished black and white printing, which is 3 times smaller, 2 times thinner, and weights less than a pound was $50 (it sold out in a few months). The great printing quality and the large trim size was necessary to do justice to the beautiful and finely textured photographs.

Although he chooses very simple subjects - often to the point of being mundane -, Namkung reveals a wealth of detail in his photographs. Using a large format camera, Namkung was among the first contemporary photographers (before Robert Glenn Ketchum) to explore print scale, as he felt that prints had to be large enough to compete with paintings. Over the course of an amazingly rich and varied life - which he recalls in a delightful account in the beginning of the book - he was deeply influenced by other arts. Like Ansel Adams with whom he studied, he came to photography from a background in music, having performed as an acclaimed tenor specializing in German lieder until his 40s. He also befriended many of the artists of the Northwest School such as Mark Tobey. We can see the product of those influences in his focus on texture, repetitive but differentiated elements, rhythm of lines, as well as in his marked preference for abstraction.

Namkung made repeated visits to Steptoe Butte in the Palouse before it became the popular destination it is today, however, unlike in most photographs of that location, he preferred very soft light, even overcast, which resulted in a flat, more abstract and painterly picture plane. When looking at the captions of the images in the book, one can recognize names of National Parks locations now familiar to many nature photographers such as Wonder Lake (Denali NP) Picture Lake (North Cascades NP), Second Beach (Olympic NP). Yet it would have been impossible to identify those locations from the photographs alone, for Namkung has uncompromisingly framed just patches of grasses, water, or sand that could be found at many other places. The details that Namkung chose to photograph belie his extensive wilderness travels - he made half a dozen trips to Alaska.

Eliot Porter worte "Sometimes you can tell a large story with a tiny subject". Although Namkung's work bears many common traits with Porter's, his compositions are more rythmic, less representational, and his goals are distinctively different, as he comments: "I like to give my viewers questions, not answers". With the exception of two images from the earlier years of his career, all photographs in the book are close-ups, intimate landscapes, or larger scenes devoid of horizon. You can appreciate the precision of his composition when you compare the two crops that open the book with their full-frame counterparts (page 137 and 37 respectively). Although the crops are just missing about an inch around, the composition in them looks way less balanced to me, which meant that there was nothing else to take away from the original, a sure sign of perfection.

All the spreads of the book can be browsed on the website http://johselnamkung.net
(try a different browser if needed)

[h2oman]

That looks intriguing, but I'm having trouble figuring out how to "browse entire book." Is it just me?

[Heroique]

I can’t get beyond “page 2-3” either, but the front cover’s swirling beach ice makes me want to come back and try again.

At least you get a fun portrait of Namkung next to his camera.

Wow, a book that’s 3 feet wide when open – I might have to set it up on my Ries for viewing.

[Brian C. Miller]

The page doesn't work right with IE8, I didn't try it in Firefox, but Chrome works just fine. Lots of pictures in there! He's done quite a bit of good color work.

[QT Luong]

Works fine for me with Firefox & Safari.

[Drew Wiley]

My gosh, it looks like he's still alive and shooting with his Norma! I've been aware of his work for decades and had hoped to
meet him someday, but am seldom in the NW anymore. This fellow is the real deal. A class act landscape photographer. I'd
imagine all those wonderful C-prints from the old days have faded into oblivion by now, so it's nice to see a fresh monograph
out. ... hope the printed quality is worthy of his personal skill.

[Drew Wiley]

Yeah... Google Chrome worked. I've seen most of these images before. I wonder what they were scanned from. I'm not fond
of comparisons, but his work was highly EP influenced, but more poetic. In some ways like a John Sexton in color. Very poised, disciplined. And like AA, infused with a classical music personna. But also a lot of true abstract influences there, if
the certain images are in fact in this book - not the cornball pattern studies that photo how-to books call abstraction. He's a strong argument for why the steady contemplative methodology of view camera photography deserves its own niche and is
still highly relevant.

[civich]

Stunning. Color work usually doesn't move me. This is exceptional. Thanks, QT, for bringing it to our notice. -Chris

[David Karp]

Thank you QT. I enjoyed that very much.

[Jerry Bodine]

I recall a time in the late '60s when Johsel contacted me to borrow my 8x10 Sinar Norma (he had no 8x10 at the time) and my Series 5 metal Gitzo. He wanted to photograph a scene in the San Juan islands from a specific high location at dawn. I like to think that I helped open the door to his stellar career. Yes, he's a class act. I also recall an issue of View Camera magazine (guessing at 2008?) that published four of his images and a very brief outline of his background - well worth reading.

[h2oman]

Thanks, using Firefox did the trick. I never think to check other browsers, even though that has been the problem in the past as well. I just seem to be too thick-skulled to learn...

[mdm]

It sayes in his bio he is 93. What an amazing career in photography.

[Drew Wiley]

Man, I am sooooo happy this fellow is getting a second wind in terms of recognition. I've been wondering for a long time if he'd resurface in the public view, and if not, why? Maybe the fashionistas in Manhattan think this kind of work is dated, and that everything nowadays has to have cultural detritus, outright garbage, or bodies in the foreground, or some sort of digital contortions, to be relevant anymore. Maybe if they learned to take a deep breath and recognize that life consists of more than neurotic hype, that an oldster like this still has something to offer ... vision like this just doesn't instantly vaporize.

[Jim Becia]

I called and ordered this book yesterday and eagerly await its arrival. I had a wonderful conversation with Dick Busher who seams to be a jack of all trades in the photography and publishing business. I am sure the book is going to be first rate.

[sun of sand]

I'd never heard of him. I checked him out and have to say I much prefer Eliot Porter
I think some of his crops are a little TOO tight. Maybe they had to be.


I just now after reading the first post through see he had an affiliation with Tobey. One of the photos I saw was an almost duplicate of one of my favorite Tobey paintings ..Cells, I believe. Might be his most well known artwork.
In fact, I'm going to have to go back and actually click on it to make sure the thumbnail wasn't the Tobey that just made it's way into some bio of Namkung.


So I'm not a big fan but nice work

[invisibleflash]

Great thread, thanks. I didn't know of him. Beautiful work.

I bought one of his older books. Could not afford the $175 copy.

[invisibleflash]

I can’t get beyond “page 2-3” either, but the front cover’s swirling beach ice makes me want to come back and try again.

At least you get a fun portrait of Namkung next to his camera.

Wow, a book that’s 3 feet wide when open – I might have to set it up on my Ries for viewing.

I got jamed up too. Why do they make websites that are so tough to nav?

[Heroique]

I got jammed up too. Why do they make websites that are so tough to nav?

Sounds like the site requires specific browsers as indicated above, but anyone who’s short of an upgrade can still read Namkung’s revealing artist statement, part of which I’ve described as “synesthetic” in a recent thread about composition:


I spend a lot of time looking for subjects. ...And finally, when I find something, there always has to be a unifying, kinetic force. Which means the rhythm, and in musical terms the melodic lines. And polyphonic melodic lines especially, like Bach, for instance, or Handel and Mozart. Linear structures. And then its juxtaposition, its counterbalancing, which is called counterpoint in musical terms. And I find almost every time, when I see something, I always see melodic lines, and counterbalancing forces, and weight, and harmony. And that becomes the skeletal form of my photographs. So my photographs could always be interpreted through musical forms.

Namkung’s fascinating analogy between photographic & musical composition suggests, I think, a sharp sensitivity to visual rhythms (or “melodic lines,” he says), and a vital interest in sharing them w/ others. He seems to “hear” his subjects when he composes them, like a musician working on a score; I certainly have similar experiences when I view many of his photographs – and when I’m in the field w/ my Tachi doing my own work. One might describe his work as Lysergic! ;^)

[DarkroomDan]

I saw his show at the Seattle Art Museum in '78 and loved his work. I still have the catalog of that show around here somewhere. He had another show in the pas couple of years - I don't remember if it was at the Seattle Art Museum or the Tacoma Art Museum. The prints were very large and stupendous. The images on the website, as is most often the case, only give an pale idea of the prints. The green hillside viewed through a forest of charred tree trunks appears a muddy mess on my monitor but the print is truly vibrant. I cannot buy the book but hope to see it eventually. I suspect one of the our state University Library's are likely to acquire it and it will, in time, be available through an inter-library loan.

At both exhibits, his camera and tripod were also on display.

[sun of sand]

"a sharp sensitivity"

JESUS CHRIST lmao



lol im actually chortling
i suspect you'd like that word

[Bill_1856]

Wonderful!
Thanks for posting this and making me feel like a Troglodyte!

[Jim Becia]

Well, I just received my copy of Johsel Namkung's book, so for what it is worth, here is my two cents on the book and his work. First the book is very nicely published and and extremely well printed. The paper is a semi matte with varnish on the images. They respond very nicely with this type of printing. Now as to his work and style, I happen to like it very much. He photographs those things that I happen to like, very intimate landscapes. Personally I find his work more compelling than Elliot Porters, but that might not be fair because while I have seen several of Porter's dye transfers, most of his work that I have seen has been through books, and as a rule, those books are not even close to the quality of this book. But I do think there is a compositional and lyrical quality in Johsel's work that I like better than Porters. Just my opinion. When the book arrived today, I paged through it with my wife. Her comment was (you have to love you wife when she says things like this,) "Hey, he photographs like you, similar subjects and even similar looks." Now I am not trying to compare myself to Johsel's work, but I just mention this as to one of the reasons why I do like his work and style. Many of his images are very subtle, yet intriguing. One thing I noticed is that he is not afraid to photograph in more contrasty situations. He always used negative film and obviously knew how to use it and use it well. As a Velvia "user," I would find myself shying away from some images that he photographs. Johsel pulls this off very nicely. I do highly recommend this book, yes it is a bit pricey, but certainly well worth it in my opinion. I think Dick Busher of Cosgrove Publishing did an outstanding job.

[Heroique]

Thanks for the review, I hope more people who receive it share additional comments. (That’s interesting about his choice of negative color films.) The production values appear to be without compromise. When I saw Namkung’s nicely presented images on his site in the link above, I was curious how much greater an impact the beautiful book’s presentation might make. I suspect it would be much, much greater, maybe even a different experience.

[Brooks919]

Johsel Namkung passed away on Monday, 22 July.
You can read the Seattle Times obituary here: http://seattletimes.com/html/obituaries/2021488332_johselnamkungobitxml.html?syndication=rss

[gth]

A great loss to photography!

It was only through this notice of his passing that I became aware of his wonderful photography and this book.

He will live forever through his work.

[Otto Seaman]

Thank you for introducing him to me.

I don't usually respond to large format nature photos but these were special, some of the best ever.

Also a fan of his Norma and #5... makes me feel like a wimp!

[Brian C. Miller]

Seattle Times: Fine-art photographer Johsel Namkung dies (http://seattletimes.com/html/obituaries/2021488332_johselnamkungobitxml.html)

Acclaimed Northwest artist Johsel Namkung died Monday, July 22, 2013. He was known for his large-scale, deeply textured photos of the artistic patterns found in nature.

[Heroique]

R.I.P. :(

I love that part in The Seattle Times notice about being air-dropped into Alaska w/ his camera gear, and kayaking back out. That was in the 1970’s. But he had already lived two or three lifetimes by the 1950’s.

[Rob Vinnedge]

I agree that it is a beautiful book and it is due in no small part to Dick Busher's very fine attention to the actual publication of Johsel's work. Dick happens to be one of Seattle's finest commercial photographers, and, although I believe he has retired from photography to devote his time to Cosgrove Editions, his photographic experience and well-known reputation for attending to every possible technical detail in his work has uniquely qualified him to produce photographic books such as this. Anyone wishing to produce a book of work would do well to contact Dick at Cosgrove Editions.


Well, I just received my copy of Johsel Namkung's book, so for what it is worth, here is my two cents on the book and his work. First the book is very nicely published and and extremely well printed. The paper is a semi matte with varnish on the images. They respond very nicely with this type of printing. Now as to his work and style, I happen to like it very much. He photographs those things that I happen to like, very intimate landscapes. Personally I find his work more compelling than Elliot Porters, but that might not be fair because while I have seen several of Porter's dye transfers, most of his work that I have seen has been through books, and as a rule, those books are not even close to the quality of this book. But I do think there is a compositional and lyrical quality in Johsel's work that I like better than Porters. Just my opinion. When the book arrived today, I paged through it with my wife. Her comment was (you have to love you wife when she says things like this,) "Hey, he photographs like you, similar subjects and even similar looks." Now I am not trying to compare myself to Johsel's work, but I just mention this as to one of the reasons why I do like his work and style. Many of his images are very subtle, yet intriguing. One thing I noticed is that he is not afraid to photograph in more contrasty situations. He always used negative film and obviously knew how to use it and use it well. As a Velvia "user," I would find myself shying away from some images that he photographs. Johsel pulls this off very nicely. I do highly recommend this book, yes it is a bit pricey, but certainly well worth it in my opinion. I think Dick Busher of Cosgrove Publishing did an outstanding job.

[mdm]

A life lived well. Thanks for the book.