Ask the Curator

Corcoran ArtReach at THEARC
Fall 2007 Semester, September 17 – December 10
Photographic Explorations

Questions for
Paul Roth,
Curator of photography and media arts,
Corcoran Gallery of Art

While viewing the Ansel Adams: Documentary Film, students at THEARC were asked to write 5 or more questions, comments or thoughts they had about the film.

A few of those questions are listed below. On this blog, curator Paul Roth, will respond to five questions from the list:

1. Did he (Ansel Adams) hear music inside his head while he photographed nature since he played the piano as a kid?

2. Did he ever take photographs of natural disasters? [Courtney D., age 13]

3. Did he take photographs of animals? [Courtney D., age 13]

4. Was seeing the mountains love at first sight for him? [Maya S., age 10]

5. Did Ansel Adams take any art or photography classes?

6. Did he ever fall while he was climbing? [Mashae` M., age 12]

7. The way that the pictures were taken made it seem as thought he was in the sky, did he ever take photographs from an airplane? [Corryne G., age 13]

8. How did Ansel Adams overcome all his difficulties and problems?

9. Was he born near Yosemite Park?

10. How do you take a picture like Ansel Adams?

11. What type of camera did he use?

12. Why did he only take pictures in black and white? (Courtney D.)

13. Are his children still alive? (Mashae M.)

14. Did he have any help or did he take pictures alone. (Suzanna)

15. What places did he travel to in order to get the pictures? (Suzanna)

16. How did he plan out his photos?

17. What year was he born and what year did he die? (Essence D.)

18. How did Ansel Adams get to the top of the mountains?

19. Did he start out like us with the Value Studies? [Tanae B.]

20. Why was it so foggy when he took pictures? [Whitney E.]