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Morley Baer

Morley Baer

1916 - 1995

Morley Baer was born in Toledo, Ohio, in 1916. After earning his graduate degree in 1939 from the University of Michigan, he saw an exhibition of Edward Weston’s photographs in ...

Morley Baer

Biography

Morley Baer was born in Toledo, Ohio, in 1916. After earning his graduate degree in 1939 from the University of Michigan, he saw an exhibition of Edward Weston’s photographs in Chicago. Inspired by Weston’s work, he decided to visit him in Carmel, California, later than same year. In 1945, after documenting the Pacific War with Edward Steichen, Baer arrived in Carmel with his wife and they opened a commercial photography studio shortly thereafter. Working with his beloved 8×10 Ansco view camera, Baer soon became one of the greatest interpreters of the unique openness, light and form, imbuing the California landscape. He was featured in his first one-man museum show at the De Young Museum in San Francisco in 1959. Baer periodically assisted Edward Weston, who became a close friend, until Weston’s death in 1958. In 1967, Baer became one of the original founders of “Friends of Photography,” along with Ansel Adams and Brett Weston, at the Sunset Center in Carmel by the Sea. During his lifetime, Baer was recognized as one of the finest architectural photographers in the world and in 1966, he received the distinguished National Award for Photography from the American Institute of Architects. In 1979, he became the very first photographer to ever receive the coveted Prix de Rome from the American Academy. Countless articles and books have featured Baer’s photography, including his 1989 lifetime retrospective monograph entitled, Light Years. Baer taught and mentored countless photography students from his stone house near Garrapata Beach, designed in 1965 by William Wurster, before his death in 1995. His photographic archive is housed at the University of California, Santa Cruz.

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