Chris Coffey

Like a lot people, my life was shaped by the experiences of youth. I learned that I loved all things outdoors while wandering the woods and bogs of Michigan armed with a butterfly net, and later on Boy Scout expeditions to the backcountry. My love for the west was sparked by my mother’s stories of growing up in New Mexico coupled with our cross-country trips via train to visit family. I returned to the west repeatedly when time and money allowed, hiking most of the 4-corners areas, especially the Grand Canyon. Moving to northeast Ohio in 1995 I met, courted, and married my wife and the Cuyahoga Valley.

The “photographic journey” has been a circle for me: In the beginning I was looking out at the world through the lens and have discovered that when I am truly making my best work the camera is pointing back at me. Initially I was taking my camera places and now the camera takes me to worlds I never thought I’d be interested in.

I have been making photographs since the 1970’s, printing my own work since the 1980’s, and working exclusively with large format view cameras since 1996. Prints of my work are either Gelatin Silver or Platinum/Palladium – printed by me personally. Print quality improved dramatically after studying with noted printer Howard Bond of Ann Arbor, MI and with John Sexton – Ansel Adams technical assistant. I studied Platinum Printing with Thomas McCartney in Palm Beach Florida.

I believe in education and have taken workshops that relate to the digital technologies as well and use them when required. I have been fortunate to have my work chosen for numerous awards in the past and am proud to have work in numerous public and private collections, including the Ann Arbor Art Museum, the Mobile Art Museum, and the Saint Louis Museum of Art. In 2005 I was selected to be the Artist in Residence at the Grand Canyons North Rim and serve as a lecturer and juror for the Cuyahoga Valley National Park. In 2010 I was honored to be one of only 30 Spotlight Award Winners in Black and White Magazines Portfolio Contest, as well as receiving a Silver and Bronze award in their 2010 Single Image Competition. I volunteer my time in High School Photography classrooms throughout the country.