Artist Statement

"Extraordinary Images of the Photographic Arts"

Jim Sidinger: Artist Statement

My photography is about communication through images which use simple lines and forms in symmetric (occasionally asymmetric) relationships -- Visual Zen, if you will. I feel that the viewer's experience is improved and intensified when there is a minimal amount of incidental clutter to distract from the essence of what I am trying to communicate.

Like all good photographers, I try to let you know what I feel about a scene, not just what I see. From my first viewing of the works of the photographers Edward Weston, Michael Kenna and Jay Dusard, I have been influenced by their styles. I have connected with their concept of using simplicity to assist in communicating the emotional complexity felt when photographing. It may sound contradictory, but it seems to work for me.

As I pursued development of my own photographic style, I found that the black and white image worked best for me. I believe that the viewer can penetrate more easily and deeply into a personal interpretation of my images if I create them using this presentation format.

The subject of much of my photography is the landscape of the American West. Though I hadn’t traveled west of the Mississippi until I was almost 30, I have fallen passionately in love with the overwhelming beauty I have found here. Through my photography, I have found a way to express the awe and satisfying personal calm I experience in exploring the West’s wild and special places. Even if it is not the specific subject of a particular image, the West is in all my images. It guides how I see -- it influences how I create my art.

I have participated in "independent studies" and the practice of my art for over 25 years. I have also been fortunate in having had the experience, over the years, of learning from many great photographers through advanced study and workshops - among these: Morley Baer, Howard Bond, Michael Kenna and Jay Dusard.

I create all of my images in my traditional (chemical) darkroom where I personally print archival silver, selenium toned images from film negatives. I incorporate no digital processes into any of my work as a matter of personal choice (rather than of "religious" dogma). I shoot Large Format (4"x5") almost exclusively. My camera is an Ebony SV45Ti. My favorite lens is the Schneider 90mm XL (equivalent to 27mm in 35mm format). My films of choice are Kodak’s TMax 100 and TriX 320.