Jeffrey Conley

Jeffrey Conley (*1968) is a fine art landscape photographer who specializes in creating traditional black and white prints. His meticulously crafted prints, made utilizing traditional darkroom processes, are made in small limited editions. His work has been widely exhibited and collected by private collectors and museums worldwide. Two monographs of his work, WINTER, 2011, and REVERENCE, 2018, have been published by Nazraeli Press.

Conley‘s photographs strive for a balanced simplicity that evoke his sense of wonder and reverence for the natural world. Scale and palette vary, from small, intimate and subtle, to large, grand and dramatic. In all he seeks to capture a meditative spirit that uniquely defines his approach to photographing the landscape. He strives to create luminous hand-coated platinum & palladium prints that he feels possess a distinctive richness unique to traditional photographic processes.

Artist statement:

"For all of us, the Earth sustains our existence. In an otherwise inhospitable known universe, our little blue planet provides us absolutely everything. I`ve never understood why our societal and spiritual priorities as a species do not overwhelmingly demonstrate our gratitude by placing our planet at the pinnacle of the reverential order. 

For as long as I can remember I have felt most at peace outdoors. Nature has always been my refuge and sanctuary. I find the natural world to be endlessly wondrous in its range of character and texture, from moments of delicate intimacy and subtlety to the massively expansive and powerful. Nature is in constant change, and photography is particularly well suited to capture and amplify the swirling fluidity and the wonderfully serendipitous moments born of the ephemeral. Photographing nature is a very specific kind of exercise in mindfulness; to be out in nature with senses responsive, keenly aware of circumstances and completely receptive, yielding to the present. The photographs in this book represent some of my observations while investigating nature over these last several years; moments that represent my awe, wonder, and affinity towards our Earth. 

My prints are made in a darkroom utilizing the platinum method, a 19th century hand-made print making process evocative of alchemy. Each unique print is hand-coated with a hand-mixed emulsion formula featuring platinum and palladium metals. Platinum prints are considered among the most permanent of the photographic print making processes due to the incredible stability of the platinum group of noble metals. The prints are characterized by an exceptionally long and delicate range of velvety tones and a warm image color. I feel that the platinum process bestows a radiant shine and the resultant prints possess a distinctive luminosity. 

This book is dedicated to my daughter, Ella, who inspires me daily with her wonder and curiosity. May she and her generation be successful in the noble fight to preserve and protect our Earth." 

Jeffrey Conley, 2017, for his book Reverence, Published by Nazraeli Press, 2018