Apache
West Texas – 2021
In the 16th century, the Apache migrated south to the Texas Panhandle from what is now Canada. There they eventually encountered Mexicans; Western settlers and of course the Comanche – the most feared of the native American tribes.
The Apache wars with the US army spanned three decades of the 19th century, but it was ultimately the Comanche who pushed them further south towards the border with Mexico. Consequentially, the Apache settled the furthest south of the all Native American tribes.
In my search for the setting for this portrait, I looked for features that would readily locate the elder and his horse.
There needed to be a sense of place to lend weight to the narrative. We found this escarpment rising above cactus rich scrubland only about 40 miles north of the Rio Grande in West Texas.
The photograph was taken just a few minutes after sunrise. Out there in South West Texas the light can get a little too harsh before most folk are out of bed. As it was, we were back home by 10 am.
We want to thank our new friend Mo Brings Plenty for his help in this project.
AVAILABLE SIZES:
Standard
- Image size: 37" x 50"
- Framed with a 3" mat: 48" x 61"
- Framed with a 5" mat: 52" x 75"
Large
- Image size: 56" x 76"
- Framed with a 3" mat: 67" x 87"
- Framed with a 5" mat: 71" x 91”
We ship worldwide and use a multitude of providers to safely deliver your masterpiece. Domestic delivery and installation may also be available via Hilton Asmus Contemporary’s private art shuttle. Please inquire.
Lakota
Montana, USA 2020
My default position is always to glorify the subject – I am at heart a romanticist. Chief John Spotted Tail of the Lakota is not a hard subject to work with as much of the glorification is a given, bit we still needed the right horse, the right light and the right landscape.
We worked together initially in Wyoming, but I always wanted to photograph him in Montana too. The valley running south of Ennis to West Yellowstone offers stunning visuals and that was our focus. We determined the best light to be first thing in the morning and if we shot into the light looking east towards Big Sky, I knew we could have a strong frame.
Images shot directly against the light need a full tonal range and much of the credit for bringing out the shadow detail must go to my editing partners in Los Angeles. They and Chief John take the credit for this powerful photograph.
Available sizes
Large - Edition of 12
- Image Size: 56” x 80” in (142.24 cm x 203.2 cm)
- Framed Image: 71” x 95” in (180.34 cm x 241.3 cm)
Standard - Edition of 12
- Image Size: 37” x 53” in (93.98 cm x 134.62 cm)
- Framed Image: 52” x 68” in (132.08 cm x 172.72 cm)
We ship worldwide and use a multitude of providers to safely deliver your masterpiece. Domestic delivery and installation may also be available via Hilton Asmus Contemporary’s private art shuttle. Please inquire.
The Shift
AVAILABLE SIZES:
Standard
- Image size: 37" x 42"
- Framed with a 3" mat: 48" x 53"
- Framed with a 5" mat: 52" x 57"
Large
- Image size: 56" x 63"
- Framed with a 3" mat: 67" x 74"
- Framed with a 5" mat: 71" x 78”
We ship worldwide and use a multitude of providers to safely deliver your masterpiece. Domestic delivery and installation may also be available via Hilton Asmus Contemporary’s private art shuttle. Please inquire.
Bonnie
Creede, CO, USA 2021
The old mining village of Creede sits in a tight box canyon 9,000 feet up in the Southern Rockies of Colorado. An imposing vertical cliff face bullies main street and adds to the sense of ‘a town at the end of the line’. Creede plays to the lore and mythology of the wild west and consequently is awash with tourists during the summer. However, in the mid-winter, the place has an abandoned look to it and this was always going to be the best time to film. It would be a bridge too far to try to close the town down in July.
We had been throwing around ideas as to where to stage a Bonnie and Clyde story and chose Creede, not just because the high street is little changed from the 1920s, but because the locals, including the sheriff and the council, were fully supportive of our concept. To a man, the town folk of Creede were committed to helping us bring the project to fruition. For two days, our crew and extras seemingly doubled the winter population of Creede and the one restaurant in town was at capacity most of the time.
Fine tuning the composition was a challenge as ideally, I wanted Bonnie – played by Cara Delevingne – to be as big a part of the image as possible, but I also needed the buildings on both sides of the street to frame the narrative in the middle. Working with wide angle lenses risks making a loose image and I was determined not to fall into that trap. We had not dragged everyone up to this cold final frontier outpost to create a mundane image.
My goal was to create one single vignette to emphatically celebrate the heavily mythologised story of Bonnie and Clyde. It therefore had to be rich enough to inform, whilst remaining simple and cinematic. The final result is a great credit to all involved – Cara, her team, my production team and the many extras.
Faye Dunaway played Bonnie in the original film and she was my reference for Cara, who played the role immaculately, as I knew she would. Meanwhile, we will never know whether the driver in the car gave his best Warren Beatty impersonation – perhaps that’s just as well.
AVAILABLE SIZES:
Standard
- Image Size: 52" x 56"
- Framed with a 3" mat: 63" x 67"
- Framed with a 5" mat: 67" x 71"
Large
- Image size: 71" x 77"
- Framed with a 3" mat: 82" x 88"
- Framed with a 5" mat: 86" x 92”
We ship worldwide and use a multitude of providers to safely deliver your masterpiece. Domestic delivery and installation may also be available via Hilton Asmus Contemporary’s private art shuttle. Please inquire.
The Thundering Herd
Texas, USA 2021
Looking back at my 38 years of holding a camera, there have been a few key moments along the way. Maradona in 1986 being my initial prompt. But it was probably way later in 2014 when I took the picture Mankind in a cattle camp near Yirol in South Sudan that my life changed. To borrow from Eddie Cantor “it took me 30 years to be an overnight success”. There have been many failures along the way.
I had recently considered returning to South Sudan to re-photograph that exact location, but a combination of COVID and an uptake in conflict in the country made that impractical. I also always have reservations on reshooting any previous set, it can hint at a lack of original thought.
Meanwhile, we had an idea. Our anthology to the “Wild West” – now in its six month of production – had allowed us to become familiar not just with the topography of much of the west, but with many cowboys and ranchers whom we now consider friends. The cowboy is integral to the enduring myth of the Wild West and no more so than in Texas, where the great cattle drives were first initiated. No state played a greater role in the trail drive era.
West Texas and South Sudan ostensibly don’t have much in common, but from a filming perspective there are some similarities. The land is flat and arid and in both locations the cattle are special. The horns of the cattle looked after by the Dinka in South Sudan, are magnificent, but the Texas Longhorn is no poor cousin.
With the help of two renowned Texan working cowboys – Craig Carter and Ryon Marshall – we spent last week filming near Valentine, not far from the Mexican border. I knew what I was looking for; a frame with depth; so as in South Sudan, I brought a ladder and a frame with contextuality and breadth; so, I knew that any lens with magnification would be a big error (it normally is anyway when a sense of place is integral to the creative vision).
I settled on a standard lens, but we had a problem, the dust being kicked up by the drives was intense. If the wind took the dust towards me, there was not just the inability to film, there was a danger of the thundering herd not seeing me. On one initial drive, they came out of the dust cloud just yards from my ladder. Not something I would recommend.
So, we worked out the formula, we would shoot against the light and with the herd directly downwind from me. As we rose at 4 am, we prayed the local weather forecast was accurate.
The cowboys, led by Ryon Marshall, were magnificent and after 72 hours we got the job done. The closing down party in the desert last Thursday night was something I will always remember. Great food, the most engaging company and, of course, country music. My team left with a warm glow and a real sense of connection with the cowboy culture down there. We can all learn something from it.
You gotta love Texas.
AVAILABLE SIZES:
Large: Edition of 12 + 3 AP
- Image size: 48" x 101" in (121.92 cm x 256.54 cm)
- Framed Image: 63" x 116" in (160.02 cm x 294.64 cm)
Standard: ALL EDITIONS ALLOCATED OR SOLD Please contact us for more information
- Image Size: 32” x 67” in (81.28 cm x 170.18 cm)
- Framed Image: 47” x 82” in (119.38 cm x 208.28 cm)
We ship worldwide and use a multitude of providers to safely deliver your masterpiece. Domestic delivery and installation may also be available via Hilton Asmus Contemporary’s private art shuttle. Please inquire.
Ain’t My First Rodeo
Texas, USA 2021
The mythical cowboy, whose image has been shaped by history, fiction and folklore, is unquestionably America’s predominant symbolic native son. For many people across the world, a cowboy is the most American thing they can think of. For that we should be thankful. Much better this noun than a Big Mac or even an Apple Mac.
Texas is the home of the cowboy and it is also the home of the longhorn. It was the birthplace of the great cattle drives north to the Kansas railroads in the 1870s and the names of the State’s leading sports teams leave us in no doubt as to the pride in the region’s heritage.
The cowboy and the longhorn remain part of today’s Texas and in West Texas we have built up a strong network of contacts who are now happy to allow us to drop into their daily lives. Filmmaking in my mind is a team sport – we are always reliant on the help and excellence of others. We have invested time in the communities of western Texas and we are now slowly reaping the rewards.
This was not an easy frame to take, as the big steer is turning towards my default flat position on the ground. There is quite an adrenaline rush at that level of proximity and this is not something to try on your own. I had seasoned cowboys on the ground right beside me.
I had no expectation of Ryon Marshall – my go to Texan cowboy – being in pin sharp focus. It was not necessary for the narrative to hold up. What mattered was that the steer was flying and that the face and eyes were pin sharp.
The composition is fortunate, as it does look as if Ryon is flying. Anything is possible with him, as it certainly isn’t his first rodeo.
AVAILABLE SIZES:
LARGE: Edition of 12 + 3 AP
- Image Size: 56" x 70" in (142.24 cm x 177.8 cm)
- Framed Image: 71" x 85" in (180.34 cm x 215.9 cm)
STANDARD: Edition of 12 + 3 AP
- Image Size: 37" x 46" in (93.98 cm x 116.84 cm)
- Framed Image: 48" x 57" in (121.92 cm x 144.78 cm)
We ship worldwide and use a multitude of providers to safely deliver your masterpiece. Domestic delivery and installation may also be available via Hilton Asmus Contemporary’s private art shuttle. Please inquire.
Drovers
This photograph was taken in 2021, but I sense it could have been taken in 1870. We are drawn to filming locations exuding a palpable sense of timelessness thus offering optionality on the narrative.
The more remote the location, the greater the possibility for us to remove the “now” and let our imagination jump into any era over the last six or seven generations. West Texas is my West World and that is why this bleak, mournful and unforgiving canvas has such a grip on me. It is part of America that time most certainly forgot. No wonder film makers have long been lured here.
Cowboys and cattle are not a new story; the partnership is one of the most enduring symbols of post-Civil War America and that is why they visually complement this landscape so effortlessly.
We knew what we wanted to do here, but working against the light with this amount of dust is a low percentage game. Dust can be a cameraman’s friend as it defies gravity, but there is a tipping point when it becomes his foe. On this frame, the lead drover is just out of the dust storm allowing for detail and the full benefit of the back light. The rest of this particular series was of no use at all. That is what we mean by a low percentage game.
I am in awe of the cowboys with whom we work in West Texas. They are the real deal and nothing is too much trouble for them. They have manners, work ethic and a sense of duty.
Texas is often mocked, but I think we can learn a great deal from cowboy culture.
AVAILABLE SIZES:
Standard
- Image size: 30" x 67"
- Framed with a 3" mat: 41" x 78"
- Framed with a 5" mat: 45" x 82"
Large
- Image size: 44" x 101"
- Framed with a 3" mat: 55" x 112"
- Framed with a 5" mat: 59" x 116"
We ship worldwide and use a multitude of providers to safely deliver your masterpiece. Domestic delivery and installation may also be available via Hilton Asmus Contemporary’s private art shuttle. Please inquire.
The Last Supper in Texas
Texas, USA 2021
This was a challenging set, but great fun. We did all we could to be true to the concept. Indeed, after the shoot was wrapped at dusk, we enjoyed a contemporary Texan feast on site with barbequed steak, ample refreshment and live country music. The chosen location was a private ranch not many miles north of Big Bend National Park on the Mexican border.
In my mind this was always going to be a West Texas shoot. My intent was that every one of my frontier characters had to be strong and play their role with authority. I was less concerned with mirroring the exact positioning in Leonardo da Vinci’s masterpiece than I was with the personal safety of the talent as the steer was a massive animal and we had no real option but to work around him and his comfort zone.
There was no picture without the Longhorn, but it was not easy to encourage him into the centre of the set during the ideal light – which was about an hour before sunset. Roxanna Redfoot from Dallas always plays her role to perfection, no matter the circumstances, and this shoot was another case in point. She cuts the perfect contrast to all around her. The cowboys didn’t need to dress up; they are what they are down on the Rio Grande.
AVAILABLE SIZES:
Standard
- Image size: 31" x 67"
- Framed with a 3" mat: 42" x 78"
- Framed with a 5" mat: 46" x 82"
Large
- Image size: 46" x 100"
- Framed with a 3" mat: 57" x 111"
- Framed with a 5" mat: 61" x 115"
We ship worldwide and use a multitude of providers to safely deliver your masterpiece. Domestic delivery and installation may also be available via Hilton Asmus Contemporary’s private art shuttle. Please inquire.
The Winner Stays
Montana, 2019
It was by pure chance that we found this treasure trove of a saloon bar off a remote country road in Western Montana. Time appeared to have stood still for over 100 years and as an authentic “Final Frontier” canvas on which to tell a story, I have never seen a better room in which to work. There was not one hint of modernity and the wooden and leather finish to the pool table was absolutely remarkable. The attention to detail throughout the bar was exceptional – the Bucking Horse is a labour of love for its owner – a true mountain man called John Crane.
48 hours before Cindy’s arrival, we spent a morning in the bar exploring every angle. The window light was okay, but the ambient light was marginal and it was clear we only had one angle to work with as I could not shoot towards the two windows. Luckily, with my maximum wide-angle lens, we could, from the chosen position, include enough of the bar to do it justice and also major on the pool table – which was the standout feature of the saloon.
The next question was what to do? This is an outstanding location and we needed to do it justice. We knew that the pool table would be critical and if we were to bring a wolf into the mix, he would need to be involved in the game.
On the day of the shoot, Cindy killed it – she was such a presence and that was exactly what I asked for. She owns the bar with her sovereign and authoritative look. I wanted to create a final frontier vignette that had a menacing overlay – no out of towner is coming into this territorial bolthole, playing pool and leaving with the cash. It is Wild West American hustle.
AVAILABLE SIZES:
LARGE - Edition Size: 20
- Image: 56" x 76" (143 cm x 193 cm)
- Framed: 67" x 95" (171 cm x 242 cm)
STANDARD - Edition Size: 20
- Image: 37" x 56" (94 cm x 143 cm)
- Framed: 48" x 67" (122 cm x 171 cm)
We ship worldwide and use a multitude of providers to safely deliver your artwork. Domestic delivery and installation may also be available via Hilton Contemporary’s private art shuttle. Please inquire.
The American Dream
Canyonlands, Utah, USA – 2021
As my close friends, family and team know, I am my own biggest critic. I will not tolerate the bland or the mundane and we fail far more than we succeed.
In my experience, it is primarily through failure that we eventually learn how to succeed. “Wild West” imagery is such a heavily populated genre that creatives run the risk of falling down a trope canyon no matter their earnest endeavour. It is challenging to transcend or be authentic.
The legacy of Edward Curtis and Ansel Adams throws a heavy shadow over any contemporary photographer trying to pay homage to the American West.
Filmmakers must feel the same when addressing John Ford’s ownership of the moving image. The grandeur and majesty of the final frontier may be without equal, but it has been so well documented that artists risk much by focusing on this heavily mythologized era. The excitement of just being there can impinge on creativity, a bit like a student of photography arriving in Paris for the first time.
But this cinematic photograph allows for a fleeting moment of proud retrospection. The light and the compositional balance work and I can look at the print for some time – perhaps as much as any picture I have taken in the last couple of years. The image is as emotional as it is timely and relevant. It speaks to me and of course the cowboy is as good as it gets.
America may have had the most challenging of years, but tomorrow a new chapter begins for a country that still leads the world in so many fields. Most of all, at its core, it remains a nation of entrepreneurs. Those that went west in the 1800s fought hard for everything they had and provided much of the foundation of the American Dream. Whether they were gold prospectors , picks and shovels suppliers or simply settlers, their collective fortitude shaped the America that we know and will soon love again. The cowboy capitalist was integral to the evolution of the American economy. Everything was possible and everything still remains possible.
It would be remiss not to mention the Coen Brothers as an inspiration to me. For those that have not seen The Ballad of Buster Scruggs (Netflix), it is cinema at its very best and chapter four – starring the wonderful Tom Waits as the doggedly determined gold prospector – says more in 15 minutes about the American Dream than most Westerns achieve in two hours.
AVAILABLE SIZES:
Standard
- Image size: 37" x 54"
- Framed with a 3" mat: 48" x 65"
- Framed with a 5" mat: 52" x 69"
Large
- Image size: 56" x 81"
- Framed with a 3" mat: 67" x 92"
- Framed with a 5" mat: 71" x 96”
We ship worldwide and use a multitude of providers to safely deliver your masterpiece. Domestic delivery and installation may also be available via Hilton Asmus Contemporary’s private art shuttle. Please inquire.