Edward Weston

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Lore & Background

Weston was born in Highland Park, Illinois, the second child and only son of Edward Burbank Weston, an obstetrician, and Alice Jeanette Brett, a Shakespearean actress. His mother died when he was five years old and he was raised mostly by his sister Mary, whom he called "May" or "Maisie." As a present for his 16th birthday Weston's father gave him his first camera, a Kodak Bull's-Eye No. 2, which was a simple box camera. He took it on vacation in the Midwest, and by the time he returned home his interest in photography was enough to lead him to purchase a used 5 × 7 inch view camera. He began photographing in Chicago parks and a farm owned by his aunt, and developed his own film and prints. In 1904 he submitted his work to the magazine Camera and Darkroom, and in the April 1906 issue they published a full-page reproduction of his picture Spring, Chicago. At his sister's urging Weston left Chicago in the spring of 1906 and moved near May's home in Tropico, California. A year later he moved to Effingham, Illinois, to enroll in the Illinois College of Photography. They taught a nine-month course, but Weston finished all of the class work in six months. The school refused to give him a diploma unless he paid for the full nine months; Weston refused and instead moved back to California in the spring of 1908. On January 30, 1909, Weston and Flora May Chandler married in a simple ceremony. The first of their four sons, Edward Chandler Weston (1910–1993), known as Chandler, was born on April 26, 1910. In 1910 Weston opened his own business, called "The Little Studio," in Tropico. His second son, Theodore Brett Weston (1911–1993), was born on December 16, 1911. A third son, Lawrence Neil Weston, was born on December 6, 1916. Their fourth son, Cole Weston (1919–2003), was born on January 30, 1919.

Reader's Guide

Edward Weston's significance lies in his shift from soft-focus pictorialism to highly detailed, sharp-focus photography. Initially his work was typical of the soft focus pictorialism that was popular at the time, but within a few years he abandoned that style and went on to be one of the foremost champions of highly detailed photographic images. He has been called "one of the most innovative and influential American photographers" and "one of the masters of 20th century photography." In 1937 Weston was the first photographer to receive a Guggenheim Fellowship, and over the next two years he produced nearly 1,400 negatives using his 8 × 10 view camera. Some of his most famous photographs were taken of the trees and rocks at Point Lobos, California, near where he lived for many years. In 1947 he was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease and he soon stopped photographing. He spent the remaining ten years of his life overseeing the printing of more than 1,000 of his most famous images. His sons Chandler, Theodore Brett, Lawrence Neil, and Cole also became photographers, extending his artistic influence.

Did You Know?

• Weston took part in the men's double American round archery event at the 1904 Summer Olympics, with his father also taking part in the same event.
• He finished a nine-month course at the Illinois College of Photography in six months, but refused to pay for the full nine months and so never received a diploma.
• Weston's first published photograph, Spring, Chicago, appeared as a full-page reproduction in the April 1906 issue of Camera and Darkroom.
• He kept detailed journals he called his 'Daybooks' for two decades, recording his thoughts about his work, observations about photography, and interactions with friends, lovers, and family.
• In 1920 Weston began photographing nude models for the first time.