Originally Posted by
Merg Ross
Gregg, hope not!
I was surprised when the museum wrote me a few years ago to report that some of my very early work (1953) was in their collection. Piecing the tale together, it turns out that a collection of photographs gifted by the niece of Dody Weston Thompson found its way to the museum. Dody was Edward Weston's assistant for several years after he had ceased photographing in 1948. She was also the guiding force behind his Anniversary Portfolio and Fifty Photographs book, both published in the early 1950's. It was during that time that I met her, and as a teenager had given her prints of my first photographic efforts. Also during this time she was married to Edward's son Brett. For her assistance, Edward compensated her with works from his personal collection. Hence, the works at the Sasse Museum by Edward Weston came from Dody's personal collection.
Dody was a fine photographer and writer on the subject. She was with Edward at Point Lobos in 1948 when he made the last photograph of his career. He later labeled it "Dody Rocks".
Dody died in Los Angeles in 2012 at the age of 89. We had a long and wonderful friendship.
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