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Lot Essay
According to Brigman, the present image was made 'between hail showers from racing clouds and glorious sunlight.' The Oakland, California based artist was known to go on long, spiritually explorative camping trips, sometimes lasting a month or two, either alone or with her dog Rory and other companions. On these ritualistic trips, photography became Brigman's chosen method of expression in her quest to establish an intimacy with nature. One of her favorite locations to camp and create images at was Desolation Valley in the High Sierra.
In an April 1926 issue of Camera Craft magazine, Brigman contributed an article entitled, 'The Glory of the Open' in which she recalls the following about the making of Invictus: 'the Gods of the Mountain in their inscrutable ways brought to me everything, and to crown all, a lovely human. This human knew nothing of my work with mountain trees, but was willing to go to the wonder-tree and there, in this high, lone place...the film of the print Invictus came to birth' (Brigman, 'The Glory of the Open', Camera Craft 33, April 1926, p. 161).
The present print of this stunning image comes from the prestigious Gilman Paper Company Collection. When this print was offered in the collection sale at auction in 2006, it was noted that, according to Brigman authority Susan Ehrens, Brigman photographs with the studio label that is applied to the verso of this work are very rare; Ehrens also notes that the studio address on the label eventually became a meeting place for members of Group f/64.
In an April 1926 issue of Camera Craft magazine, Brigman contributed an article entitled, 'The Glory of the Open' in which she recalls the following about the making of Invictus: 'the Gods of the Mountain in their inscrutable ways brought to me everything, and to crown all, a lovely human. This human knew nothing of my work with mountain trees, but was willing to go to the wonder-tree and there, in this high, lone place...the film of the print Invictus came to birth' (Brigman, 'The Glory of the Open', Camera Craft 33, April 1926, p. 161).
The present print of this stunning image comes from the prestigious Gilman Paper Company Collection. When this print was offered in the collection sale at auction in 2006, it was noted that, according to Brigman authority Susan Ehrens, Brigman photographs with the studio label that is applied to the verso of this work are very rare; Ehrens also notes that the studio address on the label eventually became a meeting place for members of Group f/64.