2008 prc benefit auction

5. Bradford Washburn
Twilight, Mt. Blackburn, Aug. 15, 1938
(Neg. 1863), 1938/2000
Gelatin Silver Print, 15 x 19 inches
No edition number, only 30 ever printed, Signed verso
Framing donated by Panopticon
Courtesy of Panopticon Gallery
Retail Value: $5,200

Bradford Washburn was an internationally-renowned photographer, cartographer, and expert on Alaska's mountains and glaciers. Best known for his photographs of Alaska, he was Director of Boston's Museum of Science for over 40 years. Working primarily with his Fairchild K-6 large format aerial camera using 8” roll film, the technical quality is exquisite and his images of mountains are majestic, serene, and sublime. Washburn was a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and London's Royal Geographical Society. Washburn is responsible for definitive maps of Mount McKinley, the Grand Canyon, Mount Everest, and New Hampshire's Presidential Range. Washburn numbered every negative he took; this was the 1,863th exposure. Washburn died in January 2007; he was 96.