Binh Danh’s solo show will be at Haines Gallery from September 6 – October 27, 2012.

Excerpt from the press release:

“SAN FRANCISCO – Known for his innovative approach to alternative photographic processes, Binh Danh presents a new series of daguerreotypes in his fourth exhibition at Haines Gallery. The works on view in Yosemite are the result of his three-year investigation into perfecting the creation of “in-camera” daguerreotypes, one-of-a-kind works that cannot be duplicated and are the earliest form of photography. While Danh experimented with variations on the daguerreotype process in earlier bodies of work, it was not until 2009 that he embarked upon the painstaking process of sensitizing, exposing and developing silver plates in the landscape, striving to achieve the quality he so admires in nineteenth century examples of this medium.

Danh’s daguerreotypes extend and reconsider the pursuit of pioneering nineteenth century landscape photographer, Carleton Watkins, best known for his series of mammoth-plate photographs made in the Yosemite Valley in the mid-to-late 1800s. He revisits many of the same sites as Watkins, including Yosemite Falls, El Capitan and Horsetail Falls, which is only viewable two to three months each year. Though investigating the same terrain as this predecessor, Danh imbues this scenery with his distinctly personal perspective – namely, an attempt to negotiate his connection as a Vietnamese American with the landscape and history of the United States. He explains, “I am interested in how we as a nation of immigrants could ‘reflect’ on these daguerreotypes and see our faces in this landscape.” The highly reflective surfaces of Danh’s daguerreotypes literally mirror their surroundings, embracing viewers within the idyllic environs of this national
landmark.”

Visit his online gallery to see the plates included in the show or purchase the available catalog on blurb.