© Trustees of Princeton University
Receding Tide, Oregon,
1970
Ruth Bernhard, 1905–2006; born Berlin, Germany; died San Francisco, CA
2024-66
More Context
Special Exhibition
<p> Bernhard’s photographs harness light to transform everyday materials, bodies, or landscapes into abstracted compositions, as seen in this view of the Oregon Coast. In the artist’s words, “Light is the reason for my photographing at all. It is a language that speaks to me. It reveals the subject and becomes an experience that matches my feelings. In that fusion I sense the life force there in the subject and in myself. In that glow, I am in love, madly in love with the world.” The Museum is home to Bernhard’s photographic archives, and the Princeton University Library houses her papers. </p>
Information
Title
Receding Tide, Oregon
Dates
1970
Maker
Medium
Gelatin silver print
Dimensions
20.1 × 24.9 cm (7 15/16 × 9 13/16 in.)
Credit Line
Gift of Douglas C. James, Class of 1962
Object Number
2024-66
Place Made
United States, California, Hollywood
Signatures
Signed in graphite on mat: Ruth Bernhard
Culture
[Center for Photography at Woodstock, NY, 2001, catalogue #196]; purchased by Douglas C. James; given to the Princeton University Art Museum, 2024.
