Gordon Dinwoodie
“Lith printing is a process that fascinates me, as it creates dense blacks and beautiful highlights, with warm tones in some papers and gritty, grainy images in others. I like the element of chance that can bring something unexpected to an image.” – Gordon
Gordon grew up in Alberta and has always enjoyed exploring the backroads and natural landscapes of the province. Beyond Alberta’s borders, Gordon has also found opportunities to see people and places with fresh eyes, or through the viewfinder of a film camera in hand.
Although Gordon has been working with film since his parents gave him his hand-me-down Box Brownie as a child, these days he frequently uses an 8×10 view camera. He loves shooting large format for the meditative process it encourages- It is impossible to be in a hurry with a camera that big! Gordon also work with medium format, when something more portable is called for.
Gordon’s darkroom provides a place of retreat from an increasingly busy world, and allows time for the creative process. He works with silver-based black and white materials, including silver gelatin and albumen, and has recently begun to explore photogravure. While much of his silver gelatin printing uses traditional developing processes, he also work with lith printing techniques. The slightly unpredictable element of lith printing brings an enjoyable element of surprise to the printing process.
Gordon’s subject matter is a mix of landscape, architecture, people, and sometimes street photography. He believes monochrome images focuses the viewer on elements of a scene by reducing it to essential form and composition. His work aims to provide a sense of connection between the subject of the photograph and the viewer.
