Ruth Bernhard
Ruth Bernhard
Ruth Bernhardwas a German-born American photographer...
NationalityGerman
ProfessionPhotographer
Date of Birth14 October 1905
CountryGermany
work
I feel that is more important than my work, the influence I have on my students.
beauty
I've always photographed beauty, but I've never been beautiful myself.
beauty chosen exploited form
If I have chosen the female form in particular, it is because beauty has been debased and exploited in our sensual 20th century.
endorse image reverence timeless woman
To raise, to elevate, to endorse with timeless reverence the image of woman has been my mission.
allowed happened less life pursue pursued sort supposed
I allowed life to give me presents. And everything just sort of happened the way it was supposed to happen. I did not pursue anything. It more or less pursued me.
printer prints spent time
I was a very, very careful printer when I used 8-by-10 film. I probably spent more time on printing than anything else. The more the prints were appreciated, the more time I spent on them.
architecture close francisco ideal naturally oceans refresh san
To me... San Francisco is an ideal city, intellectually stimulating and naturally beautiful. The oceans and forests are close enough to refresh the spirit; the architecture is always exciting.
anywhere artists famous knew natural quite seemed
When I was young, anywhere I would go in Germany, I would see my father's posters. Everyone knew about him. And he had many friends who were artists who were also quite famous. So, for me, it seemed very natural to be an artist and be known.
photography spiritual emotional
For me, the creation of a photograph is experienced as a heightened emotional response, most akin to poetry and music, each image the culmination of a compelling impulse I cannot deny. Whether working with a human figure or a still life, I am deeply aware of my spiritual connection with it. In my life, as in my work, I am motivated by a great yearning for balance and harmony beyond the realm of human experience, reaching for the essence of oneness with the Universe.
lonely responsibility spirit
Often I have struggled for days to get the image of the photograph to overlap the spirit I see. It is an awesome responsibility, and a lonely one.
looks photograph find-me
I never look for a photograph. The photograph finds me and says, I'm here! and I say, Yes, I see you. I hear you.
photography instinct
You have to follow your instinct all the time. Otherwise you don't make it.
photography photograph intellect
I expect photographs to find me. I never thought of looking for them. I instinctively put them there. My intellect had nothing to do with it.
photography real eye
What the human eye sees is an illusion of what is real. The black and white image transforms illusions into another reality.