San Quentin Point, no. 1
1982–1983
Image not available — this artwork is under copyright
View on museum website →Medium
gelatin silver print
Dimensions
image: 18.8 × 22.9 cm (7 3/8 × 9 in.) sheet: 20.32 × 25.4 cm (8 × 10 in.)
Classification
Photograph
Department
CPH
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Gift of Stephen G. Stein
Accession Number
2015.131.1
Art Historical Context
**San Quentin Point,. 1** (1982–1983) by Lewis Baltz invites viewers into the stark, contemplative world of late 20th-century American landscapes. This gelatin silver print, measuring a modest 18.8 × 22.9 cm, captures a specific site near California's infamous San State Prison. Baltz, a key figure in the New Top movement, transformed photography by turning his lens on the mundane—industrial parks, suburbs, and scarred terrains—rejecting romantic ideals for cool, objective documentation. Printed in the traditional gelatin silver process, prized for its rich tonal gradations and sharp detail, t...
About the Artist
Lewis Baltz
Lewis Baltz (1945–2014) was born on September 12 in Newport Beach, California, where he developed an early passion for photography, beginning seriously at age 12. His father passed away when he was 11, an event that marked his childhood. Baltz pursued formal training at Monterey Peninsula College in 1967, followed by a BFA from the San Francisco Art Institute in 1969 and an MFA from Claremont Grad...