LARGER THAN LIFE PHOTOGRAPHY
Unlike the human eye, the lens of a camera is able to focus on individual exquisite details that create an illusion giving Thomas Livingstone’s art the sense that it is Larger than Life. The unbelievable texture, high contrast, and gorgeous compositions capture what appears to be unreal and impossible.
As a fine art photographer, he revels in his ability to be singularity-focused on one project at a time. Committing himself into complete an obsessive study requires perseverance, endurance, and the ability to be flexible.
Over the course of seven years, Livingstone traversed the steep mountain faces of the San Juan Mountains photographing the long-forgotten vestiges of mining, for his project Historic Treasures. Always an adventurer, Livingstone put himself in extreme conditions to photograph year-round. Often sitting several days waiting for a storm front to move in and create cloud formations or snow patterns across the landscape within his frame. The collection includes a little over 100 images, which can be viewed in its entirety in the book, Historic Treasures of the San Juan Mountains. Selections consisting of 25 images will be released online.
Ironton #4 2017
Rio Grande
Thomas Livingstone drew photographic and adventurous inspiration from the 1800s artist, photographer, and cartographer, William Henry Jackson. W. H. Jackson traveled the west in a train, mapping the countryside while he painted and photographed the landscape around him. Like Jackson, Thomas Livingstone finds inspiration in his surroundings. While living in Silverton he became known as the “Train Photographer” for his collection of the steam train that travels between Durango, CO, and Silverton, CO. Livingstone sells these prints to the thousands of tourists that travel to town each summer at The Kendall Mountain Gallery, owned and operated by Livingstone himself.
Engine Works
Lynx
In the age of digital photography and Photoshop manipulation, many are surprised to find Livingstone is a traditionalist. He reports, “If it can’t be done in a dark room, it isn’t happening in Photoshop.” His style is driven by his technical approach to photography. It is clean, simple, and pure. The Lynx photo is a great example. The lynx was sitting in the shade with a generous backlight. Livingstone overexposed the background to silhouette the lynx, with light while featuring the textural detail of the animal
