"Welcome, all you fans of small bodies of water," John Gossage said, as he took to the stage of the McEvoy Auditorium for a spirited discussion of his work The Pond with Toby Jurovics, American Art's curator of photography. Originally published as a book in 1985, Aperture recently re-released The Pond in concert with the museum's exhibition, John Gossage: The Pond, which marks the first time that the fifty-two gelatin silver prints that make up the series have been shown together in a museum or gallery. "This is the first time I've ever seen them on the walls," Gossage added.
The pond is a nondescript area between his Washington, D.C. home and the University of Maryland, where he taught for many years. It's not the most beautiful spot in the world—"it's a little sharp out there,"—commented Jurovics, and a far cry from Henry David Thoreau's more famous, perhaps more contemplative, body of water.
Unlike many artists, Gossage's ambition for his work was a book, not a gallery exhibition. "I wanted to do a book and had no idea what I wanted the book to be. …And I found this place. There are a lot of pictures I could make of this place. I thought, 'this place has possibilities, let's see where this leads me.'" The book, carefully designed by Gossage at every turn, is what the artist calls "a lap medium." And "What can be more intimate than sitting in 2,000 thousand peoples's laps?" he added.
Interestingly, not all of the photos of the pond were taken at the pond. Several were found in Berlin, and a poetic image of birds wheeling overhead was taken on Long Island. So, what is fact and what is fiction when it comes to photography and creating an image? "I did not have to go back to the pond when pictures in Berlin spoke to me. This is not a site-specific piece," he told us.
When asked by Jurovics about the choice of film versus digital Gossage told us, "I shoot black and white film because I can get more out of it than black-and-white digital." When Jurovics mentioned that the tools to produce silver gelatin prints will probably run out in five years, Gossage told us with tongue firmly in cheek, "I feel like I'm running out in five years, too." If you couldn't attend the lecture, then check out the "pondcast" here.
