"Near Half Moon Bay series 1978"
Gelatin Silver Print, Signed
B/W negative 1978, vintage gelatin silver print 1994
Edition 3 of 3
11" x 14"(unframed)
16" x 20" (framed)

About the Piece

This image was created during one of several field trips between Berkeley and Carmel Valley, California, during the summer of 1978, specifically on the Pacific Coast along Cabrillo Highway south of Half Moon Bay. I was exploring the so-called "Zone System" as espoused by my teacher William Garnett (1916-2006) and as part of a debate with Brett Weston (1911-1993), a master photographer who challenged me to validate its utility. These travels up and down the coast were a by-product of my work with Weston, who at the time was my first residential garden client. The image was captured using my large format 4" x 5" Linhof Technika view camera with AgfaPan 25 sheet film. Eventually, I convinced Weston of the zone system's utility with this image, originally printed on Agfa paper. The 1994 vintage print was custom-printed on Ilford fiber-based paper and exhibited in the "Parallel Life" 1996 solo exhibition.

About the Artist

Mary G. Padua, ASLA, is currently a professor at Clemson University's School of Architecture. Her writings and photographs of post-socialist China's urban experiment have been published widely. She is a licensed landscape architect and fine-art photographer who maintains MGP Studio: ART DESIGN RESEARCH, a critically minded practice rooted in research, fine arts, and the craft of designing human-centered, restorative experiences. Through invitation, her work is shown in solo and group exhibitions/installations internationally, and her photographs are held in public and private collections. Mary's contributions to landscape architecture and fine arts have been recognized with honors and awards. Along with receiving a B.A. in landscape architecture, with a minor in visual design (photography), from the University of California, Berkeley, she worked as Brett Weston's field assistant in the late 1970s and maintained their association until 1993, when he passed away. Mary completed graduate studies at the University of California, Los Angeles, earning an M.A. in architecture with a specialization in urban design, and at the Edinburgh College of Art, earning a Ph.D.