Editing Ruth Bernhard

{{Short description|German-born American photographer (1905–2006)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2020}}
{{Infobox person
|name        = Ruth Bernhard
|image       = Ruth Bernhard.jpg
|caption     =
|birth_name  =
|birth_date  = {{birth date|1905|10|14|mf=y}}
|birth_place = [[Berlin]], [[German Empire]]
|death_date  = {{death date and age|2006|12|18|1905|10|14|mf=y}}
|death_place = San Francisco, California, U.S.
|other_names =
|known_for   =
|occupation  = Photographer
|nationality = [[United States|American and German]]
}}
'''Ruth Bernhard''' (October 14,{{cn|date=June 2023}} 1905 – December 18, 2006) was a German-born American photographer.<ref name="sfgate">Sabin Russell, "[http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2006/12/19/BAG8JN28GN1.DTL Ruth Bernhard: Photographer of nudes and still lifes]" (obituary), ''San Francisco Chronicle,'' December 19, 2006.</ref>

==Early life and education==
Bernhard was born in Berlin to [[Lucian Bernhard]] and Gertrude Hoffmann. Lucian Bernhard was known for his poster and typeface design, many of which bear his name and are still in use. Bernhard's parents divorced when she was 2 years old and she only met her mother twice after the divorce.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Ruth Bernhard: the eternal body : a collection of fifty nudes|last=Mitchell|first=Margaretta K|date=1986|publisher=Chronicle Books|isbn=0811808262|location=San Francisco (Calif.)|language=en|oclc = 468438726}}</ref> She was raised by two schoolteacher sisters and their mother.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Ruth Bernhard : the collection of Ginny Williams.|date=1993|publisher=Tallgrass Press|others=Bernhard, Ruth., Williams, Ginny., Bunnell, Peter C., Denver Art Museum., Arvada Center for the Arts and Humanities.|isbn=1881138046|oclc=29463798}}</ref>  Bernhard's father Lucian was a major proponent of Ruth's work, and advised her frequently.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.glbtqarchive.com/|title=Bernhard, Ruth|last=Corinne|first=Tee A.}}</ref>

Bernhard studied art history and typography at the [[Berlin University of the Arts|Berlin Academy of Art]] from 1925 to 1927 <ref>More fully, the Academie der Mahler-, Bildhauer- und Architectur-Kunst, the precursor of both the [[Berlin University of the Arts]] and the [[Akademie der Künste]]. The dates are from Rosenblum, p.&nbsp;294.</ref>  before moving to New York City to join her father.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://historiccamera.com/cgi-bin/librarium2/pm.cgi?action=app_display&app=datasheet&app_id=2096|title=Ruth Bernhard at Historic Camera – History Librarium|website=historiccamera.com|access-date=March 11, 2017}}</ref> She began teaching at the University of California in 1958, while also giving lectures, classes and workshops all over the United States.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Recollections : ten women of photography|date=1979|publisher=Viking Press|others=Abbott, Berenice, 1898–1991., Mitchell, Margaretta.|isbn=0670590789|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/recollectionsten0000unse}}</ref>

==Photography career==

In 1927 Bernhard moved to New York City, where her father was already living. She worked as an assistant to [[Ralph Steiner]] in ''[[Delineator]]'' magazine, but he terminated her employment for indifferent performance. Using the severance pay, Bernhard bought her own camera equipment.<ref>Move, working for Steiner, purchase of equipment: Lavender, "Ruth Bernhard"; Rosenblum, p.&nbsp;294</ref> By the late-1920s, while living in Manhattan, Bernhard was heavily involved in the lesbian sub-culture of the artistic community, becoming friends with photographer [[Berenice Abbott]] and her lover, critic Elizabeth McCausland. Her first realization that she was attracted to other women occurred on New Year's Eve 1928 when she met the painter Patti Light.<ref name=":0" /> She wrote about her "bisexual escapades" in her memoir.<ref>[http://www.mcall.com/entertainment/all-infarinato.6666560dec13,0,4281842.story An Eye For Collecting], Geoff Gehman, ''The Morning Call'', December 13, 2008</ref> In 1934 Bernhard began photographing women in the nude.<ref>{{Citation|last=Conrad|first=Donna|title=A Conversation with Ruth Bernhard|url=http://www.photovisionmagazine.com/articles/bernhard.interview.html|year=2000|magazine=PhotoVision Magazine|volume=1 |issue=3}}
</ref> It would be this art form for which she would eventually become best known.<ref name="CorinneRuth">Corinne, "Ruth Bernhard".</ref> In 1935, she chanced to meet [[Edward Weston]] on the beach in [[Santa Monica]].<ref>Chance meeting with Weston: Lavender, "Ruth Bernhard."</ref> She would later say;

{{blockquote|I was unprepared for the experience of seeing his pictures for the first time. It was overwhelming. It was lightning in the darkness ... here before me was indisputable evidence of what I had thought possible—an intensely vital artist whose medium was photography.|sign=Ruth Bernhard|source=http://iphf.org/inductees/ruth-bernhard/}}

Bernhard was so inspired by Weston's work that, after meeting him in 1935, she moved to California (where he lived). In 1939, Bernhard moved back to New York for eight years, during which time she met photographer Alfred Stieglitz.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.icp.org/browse/archive/constituents/ruth-bernhard?all/all/all/all/0|title=Ruth Bernhard|date=March 2, 2016|work=International Center of Photography|access-date=March 11, 2017 |language=en}}</ref>

Bernhard was inspired by the small things in her life. In an interview from 1999 with [[Photographers Forum]], Ruth states," I’m most interested in—the little things that nobody observes, that nobody thinks are of any value".<ref name=":1">{{Cite book|title=20th century photographers: interviews on the craft, purpose, and the passion of photography|publisher=Burlington, MA : Focal Press|year=2015|isbn=9781317554042}}</ref> In the same interview she stated that,"Everything is universal" and that she was "very much aware of that".<ref name=":1" /> This idea of minimalism drove her passion for photography.

In 1934 Ruth received a commission from the [[Museum of Modern Art]] (MoMA) to photograph works for the ''Machine Art'' exhibition catalog.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Contemporary photographers|url=https://archive.org/details/contemporaryphot00mart|url-access=registration|date=1995|publisher=St. James Press|others=Marix Evans, Martin., Hopkinson, Amanda, 1948–, Baskakov, Andreĭ.|isbn=1-55862-190-3|edition=3rd|location=New York|oclc=31010815}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Museum of Modern Art (New York, N.Y.)|title=Machine art|date=1934|publisher=Museum of Modern Art|oclc=9339655}}</ref> Her father [[Lucian Bernhard]] set up the meeting with MoMA for her. {{Citation needed|reason=Your explanation here|date=March 2020}}

== Life on the West Coast ==
By 1944 she had met and became involved with artist and designer Eveline (Evelyn) Phimister. The two moved in together, and remained together for the next ten years in [[Carmel, California]]. Here, Bernhard worked with [[Group f/64]]. Soon, finding Carmel a difficult place in which to earn a living, they moved to Hollywood where she fashioned a career as a commercial photographer. In 1953, they moved to San Francisco<ref name="CorinneRuth" /> where she became a colleague of photographers such as [[Ansel Adams]], [[Imogen Cunningham]], [[Minor White]], and [[Wynn Bullock]].

Most of Bernhard's work is studio-based, ranging from simple [[still life]]s to complex [[Nude photography|nudes]]. In the 1940s she worked with the [[conchology|conchologist]] Jean Schwengel.<ref>Work on shells: Rosenblum, p.&nbsp;294.</ref> She worked almost exclusively in [[black-and-white]], though there are rumours that she had done some [[Color photography|color]] work as well. She also is known for her lesbian themed works, most notably ''Two Forms'' (1962). In that work, a black woman and a white woman who were real-life lovers are featured with their nude bodies pressed against one another.<ref name="CorinneRuth" />

A departure was a collaboration with [[Melvin Van Peebles]] (as "Melvin Van"), then a young [[Cable car (railway)|cable car]] gripman (driver) in San Francisco. Van Peebles wrote the text and Bernhard took the unposed photographs for ''The Big Heart'', a book about life on the cable cars.

In the early 1980s, Bernhard started to work with Carol Williams, owner of Photography West Gallery in Carmel, California.  Bernhard told Williams that she knew there would be a book of her photography after her death, but hoped one could be published during her lifetime.  Williams approached New York Graphics Society, and several other photographic book publishers, but was advised that "only Ansel Adams could sell [[Black and White Photography|black-and-white photography]] books."  Bernhard and Williams decided to sell five limited edition prints to raise the necessary funds to publish a superior quality book of Ruth Bernhard nudes.  The ensuing edition was produced by David Gray Gardner of Gardner Lithograph, (also the printer of Adams's books) and was called ''The Eternal Body''.  It won Photography Book of the Year in 1986 from Friends of Photography. This book was often credited by Ruth Bernhard as being an immeasurable help to her future career and public recognition.  The Eternal Body was reprinted by Chronicle Books and later as a deluxe limited Centennial Edition in celebration of Ruth Bernhard's 100th birthday in October 2005.  Carol Williams credited Ruth Bernhard with encouraging her to venture into book publishing, and later published several other photographic monographs.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.anatomyfilms.com/female-pioneers-photography/|title=Female Pioneers of Photography. I guess unseen can be applied here|date=October 5, 2018|website=Anatomy Films|language=en-US|access-date=March 5, 2020}}</ref>

In the 1980s Bernhard also started to work with Joe Folberg.  Folberg bought Vision Gallery from Douglas Elliott (who founded it in 1979) in San Francisco in 1982. Bernhard and Folberg worked together until Folberg's death.  The gallery split with Debra Heimerdinger taking over operations in North America and Folberg's son [[Neil Folberg|Neil]] moving the "Vision Gallery" to Jerusalem.

In 1967, Bernhard began a teaching career. This same year, Bernhard met [[United States Air Force]] Colonel Price Rice, an African American man ten years younger than her, and the two became lovers. They would remain together until his death in 1999. In her 90s, Bernhard cooperated with biographer Margaretta K. Mitchell in the book ''Ruth Bernhard, Between Art and Life'', publicly revealing her many affairs with women and men throughout her lifetime.<ref>Apogee mini-review of ''Between Art and Life''; Corinne, "Ruth Bernhard."</ref>

In 1984 Ruth worked with filmmaker Robert Burrill on her autobiographic film entitled, ''Illuminations: Ruth Bernhard, Photographer''.  The film premièred in 1989 at the [[AMC Kabuki 8|Kabuki Theater in San Francisco]] and on local PBS station [[KQED (TV)|KQED]] in 1991.

Bernhard was inducted into the [[Women's Caucus for Art]] in 1981. Bernhard was hailed by Ansel Adams as "the greatest photographer of the nude".<ref>Quoted by Lavender, "Ruth Bernhard."</ref>

Bernhard died in San Francisco at age 101.<ref name="sfgate"/>

==Publications by Bernhard==
* Bernhard, Ruth. ''Collecting Light: The Photographs of Ruth Bernhard.'' Edited by James Alinder. Carmel, Calif.: Friends of Photography, 1979
* Bernhard, Ruth. ''Gift of the Commonplace.'' Carmel Valley, Calif.: Woodrose Publications / Center for Photographic Art, 1996. {{ISBN|0-9630393-5-0}}
* Bernhard, Ruth. ''The Eternal Body: A Collection of Fifty Nudes.'' Carmel, Calif.: Photography West Graphics, 1986. San Francisco: Chronicle, 1994. Essay by Margaretta K. Mitchell. {{ISBN|0-8118-0801-7}} {{ISBN|0-8118-0826-2}}
* Van, Melvin, and Ruth Bernhard. ''The Big Heart.'' San Francisco: Fearon, 1957.
* Mitchell, Margaretta K., and Ruth Bernhard. ''Ruth Bernhard: Between Art and Life''. San Francisco: Chronicle, 2000. Print.

== Awards ==
* 1976 Dorothea Lange Award by the Oakland Museum<ref name=":0">{{Cite book|title=Ruth Bernhard : between art & life|last=Margaretta|first=Mitchell|date=2000|publisher=Chronicle Books|others=Bernhard, Ruth|isbn=0811821919|location=San Francisco|oclc=45302284}}</ref>
* 1987 Distinguished Career in Photography Award. Society of Photographic education. Midwest Regional Conference, Chicago, Illinois November 8, 1987<ref name=":0" />
* 1990 Presidential Citation for Outstanding Service to Utah State University. Logan, Utah, October 25, 1990<ref name=":0" />
* 1994 Cyril Magnin Award for Distinguished Service in Photography. Presented by the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce<ref name=":0" />
* 1996 Lifetime Achievement Award. Women's Caucus for Art. California Regional Chapter, Presented at Mills College, Oakland, March 30, 1996<ref name=":0" />
* 1997 Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters. The Academy of Art, San Francisco, June 1, 1997<ref name=":0" />
* 2003 [[Lucie Awards]] for achievement in fine art<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.lucies.org/honorees/ruth-bernhard/ |title=Ruth Bernhard 2003 honoree: achievement in fine art |publisher=Lucie Awards |access-date=December 15, 2018}}</ref>

==Solo exhibitions==
* 1936: Jake Zeitlin Gallery, Los Angeles<ref name="Contemporary photographers">{{Cite book|title=Contemporary photographers|others=Walsh, George, Held, Michael, Naylor, Colin|year=1982|isbn=0312167911|location=New York|oclc=8283869}}</ref>
* 1936: Pacific Institute of Music and Art, Los Angeles, ''Eye Behind the Camera''<ref name="Garland Publishing, Inc">{{Cite book|title=North American women artists of the twentieth century : a biographical dictionary|date=1995|publisher=Garland Publishing, Inc|others=Heller, Jules., Heller, Nancy G.|isbn=0824060490|location=New York|oclc=31865530|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/northamericanwom00hellrich}}</ref>
* 1938: P.M. Gallery, New York<ref name="Contemporary photographers"/>
* 1956: Institute for Cultural Relations, Mexico City<ref name="Garland Publishing, Inc"/>
* 1986: San Francisco Museum of Modern Art ''The Eternal Body''<ref name="Garland Publishing, Inc"/>
* 2014: Peter Fetterman Gallery ''The Eternal Nude''<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.peterfetterman.com/exhibitions/ruth-bernhard|title=Ruth Bernhard – Exhibitions – Peter Fetterman|website=www.peterfetterman.com|language=en|access-date=March 31, 2017}}</ref>

==Collections==
Bernhard's work is held in the following permanent collections:
* [[Indianapolis Museum of Art]], Indiana<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://collection.imamuseum.org/results.html?query=ruth+bernhard+&has_image=T|title=Indianapolis Museum of Art Collection Search|website=collection.imamuseum.org|language=en|access-date=June 30, 2018}}</ref>
* [[J. Paul Getty Museum]], Los Angeles, California<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.getty.edu/art/collection/search/?view=grid&query=YToxOntzOjU6InF1ZXJ5IjtzOjEzOiJydXRoIGJlcm5oYXJkIjt9&options=YToxOntzOjk6ImJlaGF2aW91ciI7czo2OiJ2aXN1YWwiO30=|title=Collection (Getty Museum)|website=The J. Paul Getty in Los Angeles|language=en|access-date=June 30, 2018}}</ref>
* Museum of Contemporary Photography at Columbia College Chicago, Illinois<ref>{{Cite web |title=Museum of Contemporary Photography |url=https://collections.mocp.org/info.php?s=Ruth%20Bernhard&t=objects&type=all |access-date=March 4, 2024 |website=www.mocp.org |language=en}}</ref>
* [[Museum of Photographic Arts]] (MOPA), San Diego, California<ref>{{Cite web |title=Permanent Collection |url=https://mopa.org/permanent-collection/ |access-date=2024-03-04 |website=Museum of Photographic Arts at the San Diego Museum of Art (MOPA@SDMA) |language=en-US}}</ref>
* [[Portland Museum of Art]], Oregon<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.portlandartmuseum.us/mwebcgi/mweb.exe?request=keywordkeyword=ruth%20bernhard|title=Portland Art Museum {{!}} Online Collections|website=www.portlandartmuseum.us|access-date=June 30, 2018}}</ref>
* [[San Jose Museum of Art]], California<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://sjmusart.org/embark/objects-1/thumbnails?records=60&query=Artist_Maker%3D%2226%22|title=San Jose Museum of Art: Collection – Artists – Ruth Bernhard|website=San Jose Museum of Art|url-status=live|archive-url=https://archive.today/20200305173443/https://sjmusart.org/embark/objects-1/thumbnails?records=60&query=Artist_Maker%3D%2226%22|archive-date=March 5, 2020|access-date=March 5, 2020}}</ref>
* [[Minneapolis Institute of Art]]<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://collections.artsmia.org/search/artist:%22Ruth%20Bernhard%22|title = Artist:%22Ruth%20Bernhard%22 &#124; Minneapolis Institute of Art}}</ref>
* [[International Photography Hall of Fame]], St.Louis, Missouri<ref>{{cite web |title=Ruth Bernhard |url=https://iphf.org/inductees/ruth-bernhard/ |website=International Photography Hall of Fame |access-date=February 20, 2020}}</ref>

==See also==
* [[List of German women artists]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

==General references==
* [http://news.minnesota.publicradio.org/features/200209/02_kerre_bernhard Ruth Bernhard] Minnesota Public Radio (audio)
* Samples of Bernhard's works
** [http://www.artnet.com/artists/ruth-bernhard/ Various photographs] at artnet
* Lavender, Lisa Ann. "Ruth Bernhard." In ''The Oxford Companion to the Photograph,'' ed. Robin Lenman. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2005. {{ISBN|0-19-866271-8}}
* [[Naomi Rosenblum|Rosenblum, Naomi]]. ''A History of Women Photographers.'' New York: Abbeville, 1994. {{ISBN|1-55859-761-1}}
* Bernhard, Ruth, and Margaretta K. Mitchell. ''Ruth Bernhard: Between Art and Life.'' San Francisco: Chronicle, 2000. {{ISBN|0-8118-2191-9}}
* Corinne, Tee A. "Ruth Bernhard." In ''An Encyclopedia of Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer Culture''. 2002.
* "Ruth Bernhard" at ''Women in Photography'': an unsigned article, with photographs by Bernhard
* [http://www.iphotocentral.com/news/issue_view.php/16/18 Ruth Bernhard, Joe Folberg] of meeting Bernhard
* Primary documents regarding her life and career are housed at Princeton University's [[Princeton University Library|Special Collections.]] An inventory of their holding can be found in this [https://findingaids.princeton.edu/collections/C1468?view=onepage finding aid.]

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[[Category:1905 births]]
[[Category:2006 deaths]]
[[Category:20th-century American photographers]]
[[Category:Artists from Berlin]]
[[Category:Artists from the San Francisco Bay Area]]
[[Category:Bisexual women artists]]
[[Category:Bisexual photographers]]
[[Category:German women centenarians]]
[[Category:German emigrants to the United States]]
[[Category:Photographers from Berlin]]
[[Category:German bisexual women]]
[[Category:German bisexual artists]]
[[Category:German women artists]]
[[Category:German women photographers]]
[[Category:German LGBTQ photographers]]
[[Category:People from the Province of Brandenburg]]
[[Category:Photographers from California]]
[[Category:American women centenarians]]
[[Category:American bisexual women]]
[[Category:American bisexual artists]]
[[Category:American LGBTQ photographers]]
[[Category:20th-century American women photographers]]
[[Category:20th-century German LGBTQ people]]
[[Category:21st-century American women photographers]]
[[Category:21st-century American photographers]]
[[Category:20th-century American LGBTQ people]]