Longmont, Colorado 1982 - 1992

Robert Adams made this photograph, Longmont, Colorado, on paper, and you can see him thinking through his process. The black and white palette feels so immediate and unpretentious, like a snapshot from your childhood. Look at the dog in the upper portion of the shot, head down, snuffling around in the grass. It’s a very particular moment that Adams has captured, but the image is all texture. There's a real density in the foreground with the grassy field in the front; it almost feels like you could reach out and touch it. It’s kind of crazy how much detail there is, and I can imagine Adams must have spent hours in the darkroom coaxing the image to its full potential. You know, Adams’ images remind me of the photographs of Stephen Shore. Shore used color, but both artists are very interested in the everyday and in exploring how we see. Ultimately, art is about opening up possibilities and asking questions, not providing answers.