Artist
John Pfahl (American, 1939–2020)American, 1939–2020
CultureAmerican
Titles
- Wave, Lave, Lace, Pescadero Beach, California
- from the portfolio: John Pfahl, Altered Landscapes, 1980
DateMarch 1978, printed 1980
Place depictedPescadero Beach, California, United States
MediumDye imbibition print
DimensionsImage: 7 13/16 × 10 3/16 in. (19.8 × 25.8 cm)
Sheet: 11 1/16 x 12 1/16 in. (28.1 x 30.7 cm)
Sheet: 11 1/16 x 12 1/16 in. (28.1 x 30.7 cm)
Credit LineMuseum purchase funded by Bob and Cindi Blakely in honor of Colin Blakely, The Manfred Heiting Collection
Object number2002.3127.8
Not on view
Explore Further
Department
PhotographySpecial Collections
Object Type
John Pfahl’s witty work exposes an essential truth of photography—the
medium collapses a three-dimensional world within the two dimensions of an
image. Pfahl takes advantage of photography’s spatial compression, constructing
compositions for the camera’s singular point of view. Here, two small strips of
lace were arranged on a cliff high above the waves, but through Pfahl’s camera
lens the space was collapsed. This visual pun exposes the similarity between
the white crested water and the delicate lace trim, while the title plays on the linguistic similarity
between these diverse objects.
Provenance[Manfred Heiting, Malibu, California]; purchased by MFAH, 2002.
Inscriptions, Signatures and Marks
Inscribed in black ink, recto, below image: Wave, Lave, Lace, Pescadero Beach, California 15/24 ©Pfahl March 1978
Cataloguing data may change with further research.
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John Pfahl
1975, printed 1980
Dye imbibition print
2002.3127.4
John Pfahl
1975, printed 1980
Dye imbibition print
2002.3127.3
John Pfahl
September 1976, printed 1980
Dye imbibition print
2002.3127.2