Teske, Edmund. Edmund Teske. September 18 - October 20, 1974.

Los Angeles Municipal Art Gallery, Barnsdale Park, 1974. Exhibition catalog, wraps, 29 pages, featuring Teske's photographs of structures associated with Frank Lloyd Wright, including Taliesin North, Hollyhock House, and Studio Residence B, as well as others taken in Chicago, et al. Includes biographical information. [Edmund Teske (1911–1996) made a living photographing musicians and other celebrities, as well as architecture, but is chiefly remembered for his experimental surrealistic photographs combining multiple images.] Good plus with moderate shelf wear and spine neatly reinforced with thin white archival tape. Summary:

Edmund Teske (1974) is an exhibition catalog published by the Los Angeles Municipal Art Gallery in conjunction with a major retrospective exhibition of the same name, held from September 18 to October 20, 1974, at Barnsdall Park. The publication serves as a vital mid-career survey of American photographer Edmund Teske (1911–1996), a foundational figure in twentieth-century experimental and mid-century modern photography.

Key Content and Themes

• The Pioneer of Solarization and Duobath: The catalog highlights Teske’s radical technical innovations in the darkroom. Long before digital manipulation, Teske mastered the "Sabattier effect" (commonly known as solarization) and pioneered his own "duobath" toning process, which infused standard black-and-white gelatin silver prints with unexpected, metallic hues of copper, blue, and sepia.

• The "Composite" Image and Visual Poetry: A central theme of the publication is Teske's use of multiple printing. By layering separate negatives—often blending a homoerotic male nude or an intimate portrait with a textured landscape or architectural ruins—Teske created surreal, dreamlike composites that explored the fluidity of time, memory, and human connection.

• The California and Frank Lloyd Wright Influence: The collection documents Teske's deep connection to Southern California, where he relocated in the 1940s. It features his early documentary work at Frank Lloyd Wright's Taliesin fellowship, architectural studies of Wright's Hollyhock House (located on the very grounds of the exhibition at Barnsdall Park), and portraits of the vibrant Los Angeles artistic and bohemian subcultures.

• Biographical and Philosophical Context: The catalog includes introductory essays and biographical chronologies that trace Teske's journey from a Depression-era documentary photographer in Chicago to a spiritual, avant-garde master in Los Angeles, framing his work as a deeply personal, poetic quest rather than mere technical exercise.

Significance

The 1974 Barnsdall Park exhibition and its accompanying catalog marked a crucial moment of institutional recognition for Edmund Teske. By celebrating his complex, layered printing techniques during an era when the art world still heavily favored "straight," unmanipulated documentary photography, this publication helped solidify Teske's legacy as a true visionary who expanded the creative and expressive boundaries of the photographic medium.