Richard Stefani (1933–2022)
From Before the Water Rose: Celilo Falls, 1956
The net forms an enormous circle against the water.
A fisherman stands on a narrow wooden platform, holding a long pole upright while the net reaches into the Columbia below. Across the channel, another man sits alone on a small platform above the rocks.
Between them is the river.
Richard Stefani's composition is remarkably balanced. The fisherman at left, the seated figure at right, the dark rocks below, and the pale curtain of the falls behind them create a scene that feels almost elemental.
But this is not an abstract composition.
It is work.
The size of the dip net becomes especially apparent when seen beside the person handling it. So does the length of the pole and the narrowness of the platform from which he works.
Richard's photograph allows us to study those physical relationships without turning them into spectacle.
The fisherman is not performing for the camera. His attention remains on the river.
That quality appears again and again in these photographs. Richard seems most interested when people are absorbed in what they are doing.
Perhaps that is why the photographs feel so immediate today.
We are not being shown a demonstration of life at Celilo.
For a fraction of a second, we are witnessing it.
Estate Edition
Printed from Richard Stefani's original 1956 color negative.
Chromogenic photographic print on Fuji Crystal Archive DP II paper, produced in Germany and mounted under matte, reflection-reducing acrylic glass with aluminum Dibond backing. Presented in a handcrafted Basel black oak floater frame. Ready to hang.
Each work is accompanied by Richard Stefani Estate documentation recording the photograph, edition number, edition size, production specifications, and provenance.
12 × 8 in.
Edition of 25
$1,500
24 × 16 in.
Edition of 15
$3,200
30 × 20 in.
Edition of 10
$6,500
Edition sizes are fixed and will not be increased.
Richard Stefani (1933–2022)
From Before the Water Rose: Celilo Falls, 1956
The net forms an enormous circle against the water.
A fisherman stands on a narrow wooden platform, holding a long pole upright while the net reaches into the Columbia below. Across the channel, another man sits alone on a small platform above the rocks.
Between them is the river.
Richard Stefani's composition is remarkably balanced. The fisherman at left, the seated figure at right, the dark rocks below, and the pale curtain of the falls behind them create a scene that feels almost elemental.
But this is not an abstract composition.
It is work.
The size of the dip net becomes especially apparent when seen beside the person handling it. So does the length of the pole and the narrowness of the platform from which he works.
Richard's photograph allows us to study those physical relationships without turning them into spectacle.
The fisherman is not performing for the camera. His attention remains on the river.
That quality appears again and again in these photographs. Richard seems most interested when people are absorbed in what they are doing.
Perhaps that is why the photographs feel so immediate today.
We are not being shown a demonstration of life at Celilo.
For a fraction of a second, we are witnessing it.
Estate Edition
Printed from Richard Stefani's original 1956 color negative.
Chromogenic photographic print on Fuji Crystal Archive DP II paper, produced in Germany and mounted under matte, reflection-reducing acrylic glass with aluminum Dibond backing. Presented in a handcrafted Basel black oak floater frame. Ready to hang.
Each work is accompanied by Richard Stefani Estate documentation recording the photograph, edition number, edition size, production specifications, and provenance.
12 × 8 in.
Edition of 25
$1,500
24 × 16 in.
Edition of 15
$3,200
30 × 20 in.
Edition of 10
$6,500
Edition sizes are fixed and will not be increased.
