This exhibition made possible by the generous support of Pierson Building Center and the Redwood Camera Club.

Juror’s Notes on the North Coast Lens 2024 photography competition

Judging a photo exhibition is often a bittersweet experience. The sweetness comes from viewing the
creative endeavors of many talented and passionate photographers; the bitter from only having a
handful of awards to give out. To further complicate matters, this exhibition had no guidelines, no
thematic structure, so it was a bit like apples, oranges, and kiwis. All delicious fruit, but also very
different.
The North Coast Lens 2024 photography competition, under the auspices of the Redwood Art
Association in Eureka, California, has a long tradition of exhibiting members’ work. While the gorgeous
North Coast of California has its own extraordinary history of photographic expression. Propelled in
part by strong photo education programs at Humboldt State University (now Cal Poly Humboldt), and
the College of the Redwoods community college, for a small population the area has had a significant
impact on photography world wide. The Tom Knight Gallery in the Morris Graves Museum is a
testimony to the impact that Knight, a professor at H.S.U., had on generations of students and
photographers, and indeed many of the participants in this exhibition had Knight as an instructor.
The work in the exhibition was a delight to judge. The variety of work, encompassing digital imaging,
experimental, hand colored, alternative process, traditional silver gelatin processes, film and digital
capture, digital editing and printing, formed an exhibition that revealed and confirmed the diversity of
photographic expression among the members. As a curator I describe myself as being dogmatically
non-dogmatic, with a wide appreciation and acceptance of contemporary photographic practice. And
this competition was a perfect match for that stance.
Indeed, we are in a surprising time. After schools, labs, companies, and others all declared film to be
dead, both Hollywood, and photographers young and old are embracing film anew. Amazingly, black
and white and color darkrooms are being built, dusted off, and restored, with waiting lists to take
courses. One of the most sought after cameras of 2024 is a half-frame 35mm film camera from
Pentax, and the company can’t build them fast enough to meet the demand. Who would have
imagined that a few years ago with Instagram ruling the internet and lives?
Accordingly, the North Coast Lens 2024 exhibition featured strong work from all types of artists. Prints
on metal, wood, paper, utilizing platinum, silver, inkjet, and more filled the two floors of the spotless
galleries. As a juror, I had only a few awards to consider, but each of the winning images were hard
fought, as the competition was so keen. From portraits, self-portraits, flowers to towering redwood
trees, beach scenes in foreign lands, a forest full of texture and light, mountaineers on a ridge
enveloped in mist, or an ocean mysteriously creating its own image, the entries were a plethora of
possibilities. Nature, fauna, flora, architecture, photo sculpture, and more formed the content of the
submissions. Despite the heated political rhetoric of the day, there was nary a political submission,
curious by omission. As juror, I couldn’t have been treated more kindly, and I’d like to thank the
Redwood Art Association for their invitation, especially Jon Exley, Vaughn Hutchins, and the late David
Boston, who first invited me to serve as the juror. All made me feel especially welcome. Thank you for
your graciousness.
I encourage folks to visit the show in person. As useful as JPEGs on a website are, there is nothing
quite like viewing original prints, and there are some absolutely wonderful works to connect with.
Harris Fogel
Springfield, PA
August 2024