Platinum Prints. A Breath of Light: The Contemporary Platinum Print. Inscribed by Thomas J. Shillea.

New Jersey State Museum, June 21-September 7, 1986. Vassar College Art Gallery, Poughkeepsie, NY, April 11-May 17 1987. Harold Simon, Guest Curator. Foreword by Leah Phyfer Sloshberg, New Jersey State Museum. Essay, "The Platinum Era, 1880-1937," by Thomas J. Shillea. INSCRIBED to Gary and dated June 15, 2019, by Shillea, who forgot to sign it. Wraps, exhibition catalog, 45 plates, includes biographical summaries of the photographers: George Tice; Richard Benson,; Irving Penn; Jan Groover; Steve Szabo; Suzi Romanik; Martin Axon; Tom Millea; Goodwin Harding; et al. Wraps, fine, exhibition catalog, 45 plates, includes biographical summaries of the photographers. Summary:

Breath of Light: The Contemporary Platinum Print (published by the New Jersey State Museum in 1986) is an exhibition catalog documenting a major traveling survey of late-20th-century platinum and palladium photography. Organized by guest curator Harold Simon, the catalog tracks the exhibition's run at the New Jersey State Museum in Trenton (June 21–September 7, 1986) and its subsequent presentation at the Vassar College Art Gallery in Poughkeepsie, New York (April 11–May 17, 1987). The volume features a foreword by museum director Leah Phyfer Sloshberg and 45 plates highlighting the work of master contemporary printmakers who led the modern revival of this hand-coated, 19th-century process.

Core Content & Conceptual Framework

1. Curatorial Vision and Technical Revival

The publication functions as a critical bridge between early photographic history and modern fine-art practices. The presentation outlines why contemporary artists rejected mass-produced, commercial silver gelatin chemistry to return to a volatile, labor-intensive historic process. The essays examine the distinct physical and visual qualities of the medium—such as an expansive matte midtone gradation and an archival image embedded directly into the fibers of fine-art paper—repositioning the platinum print as a vital vehicle for modern aesthetic experimentation.

2. Historical Context and Master Photographers

A central pillar of the catalog is an essay titled "The Platinum Era, 1880–1937," authored by expert photographer and printmaker Thomas J. Shillea. The narrative charts the trajectory of noble-metal printing from its industrial invention to its decline during World War I due to metal scarcities. The curated plates demonstrate how a diverse group of mid-to-late 20th-century masters adapted these historic methods to a wide variety of contemporary subject matter:

• Vanguard Figure Studies and Abstractions: Showcases meticulous, highly textured compositions and studio realities from artists such as Irving Penn and Jan Groover.

• Environmental and Landscape Documentation: Features atmospheric, deeply tonally balanced landscapes and documentary work by master printmakers like George Tice, Richard Benson, Steve Szabo, and Tom Millea.

3. Textures of Life and Material Craft

The commentary and artist profiles highlight a shared philosophy of unmediated texture and physical craftsmanship. Rather than treating platinum printing as a nostalgic novelty, the framing highlights the process as a way to remove the standard "photographic veil," allowing the physical textures of life to appear directly on the page. The technical details reinforce how the precise control of hand-coated emulsions allowed these artists to reclaim complete mastery over the physical print, ensuring absolute archival permanence.

A Breath of Light serves as an essential institutional record of the alternative photographic process movement of the mid-1980s. By uniting elite art-world figures with dedicated technical printmakers, the traveling exhibition and its catalog successfully validated the contemporary platinum print as a living, highly expressive fine-art medium rather than an obsolete museum curiosity.