Rambles Dreams and Shadows | Arthur Tress
Gay Activists at First Gay Pride Parade,Christopher Street,New York,negative 1970
Written by: Max Weiner
Copy Edited by: Nicholas Sapienza
Postwar America is a fantasyland entirely unto itself, with the ripe feel of victory coursing through the veins of all Americans. There was a happiness, a hope even, that the feelings of euphoria would last forever. Children began sprouting like weeds. The economy flourished. There was even a feeling of international security, albeit brief. As we see in Arthur Tress’ photography, this feeling manifested itself deep within the psyche of the zeitgeist, and in Rambles, Dreams, and Shadows, we see why he presents himself as perhaps the seminal photographer of his generation. Rambles, Dreams, and Shadows deals primarily in the American artist’s early work, where his interest in the magic of realism first began to take shape. While at first, like many photographers, his work began in stock photos and commercial imagery, his work eventually grew into a spectacle entirely unto itself, dealing in themes of fantasy, surrealism, and even diving into Tress’ own queer identity; this was beyond taboo at the time. Flipping through the pages of the book, we understand the importance of Arthur Tress in discovering our own world and romanticizing the mundaneness we engulf ourselves in throughout our daily lives.
PLATE 131-Minette as Gloria Swanson in Ruins of Fox Theater, Brooklyn, New York, negative 1971
Even the black-and-white serenity of an Arthur Tress photograph, there is a world of color to be experienced. His subjects have a certain flair about them; their limbs seem to be catalysts for our own physical freedom. Bodies occupy space with an uncanny youthfulness, where the worries of the world seem to have no effect on them. His photographs are such delectable metaphors for the joys of the Postwar period, when minds were no longer occupied with threats against national security. Here, we see a world we ourselves want to explore.
PLATE 44-Girl and Moon Dream, New York, New York, 1968
Arthur Tress plays with his landscape and surroundings like few photographers do, placing himself firmly in the category of “Stagers.” His world is doctored, yes, but the themes that are byproducts of his images serve as stories of their own, and by shifting his world Tress creates deep artistic explorations singular to his lens. Rambles, Dreams, and Shadows pays particularly close attention to Tress’ world involving shadows, paying homage to his work in dreams and fantasy. With each turn of the page, one is more convinced that Tress poses as a higher power, manipulating our reality into his own fantasy. His shadows have lives of their own; they are living, breathing things. Clothes act as birds in the trance-like state of childhood euphoria. Shadows of hands appear to reach through the pages of the book and pull you in, inviting you to join their world.
PLATE 35-Friends Playing Cards, Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn, New York, 1970
By changing the so-called “reality” of his world, Tress creates a new artistic landscape for us to dwell in. His reality becomes ours, and his work alters our perception of what is real and what isn’t. A hearty glance at Rambles, Dreams, and Shadows will have you questioning if you yourself are in a dream and perhaps the book serves as a field guide for your own consciousness. Few such artists have this certain ability, but then again, few artists have had a similar impact to Arthur Tress.
PLATE 23- Cemetery, Queens, New York, 1969
Arthur Tress: Rambles, Dreams, and Shadows will be published by J. Paul Getty Museum in November 2023. This volume accompanies a solo exhibition on view at the Getty Center from October 31, 2023, to February 18, 2024.
