Richard Stefani (1933–2022)
From Before the Water Rose: Celilo Falls, 1956
He is not looking at Richard.
That small fact gives this portrait much of its power.
The young man's face is shown in profile, his attention directed beyond the edge of the photograph. His hands rest together. Behind him is mostly blue sky, with only a small suggestion of landscape near the bottom of the frame.
Richard Stefani has removed nearly everything that might distract us from the person before him.
The result is one of the most visually striking photographs in the Celilo series.
Color is essential to it.
Yellow, red, blue, white, black, tan. Pattern sits beside pattern. Feathers extend beyond the body into the sky. Beadwork and other carefully made elements become part of the visual structure of the portrait.
Yet the photograph should not be reduced to its color.
Its real strength is presence.
We do not currently know this young man's identity, tribal affiliation, or the precise context in which Richard photographed him. Those questions remain part of the continuing research surrounding the archive.
For now, the photograph asks something simpler of us.
Look at him.
Not as an illustration of 1956.
Not as a symbol of Celilo.
As an individual person who stood before Richard Stefani's camera on a particular day nearly seventy years ago.
Richard looked carefully.
Now we can, too.
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.
8 × 12 in.
Edition of 25
$1,500
16 × 24 in.
Edition of 15
$3,200
20 × 30 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
He is not looking at Richard.
That small fact gives this portrait much of its power.
The young man's face is shown in profile, his attention directed beyond the edge of the photograph. His hands rest together. Behind him is mostly blue sky, with only a small suggestion of landscape near the bottom of the frame.
Richard Stefani has removed nearly everything that might distract us from the person before him.
The result is one of the most visually striking photographs in the Celilo series.
Color is essential to it.
Yellow, red, blue, white, black, tan. Pattern sits beside pattern. Feathers extend beyond the body into the sky. Beadwork and other carefully made elements become part of the visual structure of the portrait.
Yet the photograph should not be reduced to its color.
Its real strength is presence.
We do not currently know this young man's identity, tribal affiliation, or the precise context in which Richard photographed him. Those questions remain part of the continuing research surrounding the archive.
For now, the photograph asks something simpler of us.
Look at him.
Not as an illustration of 1956.
Not as a symbol of Celilo.
As an individual person who stood before Richard Stefani's camera on a particular day nearly seventy years ago.
Richard looked carefully.
Now we can, too.
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.
8 × 12 in.
Edition of 25
$1,500
16 × 24 in.
Edition of 15
$3,200
20 × 30 in.
Edition of 10
$6,500
Edition sizes are fixed and will not be increased.
