Jeff Heyman uses his classical training in photography to push the digital limits of the medium.

With a background in photography stretching more than four decades, Jeff, who lives in Orinda, California, received his Bachelor’s Degree in Fine Art Photography from San Francisco State University and studied under painters Robert Bechtle and Paul Pratchenko. But it was his Fine Art Photography studies with Catherine Wagner, Don Worth, Jack Welpott and Melanie Walker, while at State, that truly inspired his work. Jeff went on to produce and exhibit a range of creative work, primarily in black and white.

A San Francisco native, Jeff was influenced by the various artistic and photographic trends sweeping the Bay Area. While in high school in Danville, California, Jeff studied photography under Ralph Rappaport, an associate of Ansel Adams. Rappaport, a major influence, taught Jeff the Zone System and advanced film development and darkroom printing techniques. Rappaport also introduced Jeff to Ruth Bernhard, who met him privately in her home for a critique of his work. This meeting, with one of the world’s definitive photographers, influenced Jeff’s future work greatly. His background in classical photography is instrumental in his current work — a hybrid of classic “wet” photography and newer digital techniques.

Exhibition Statement
Having always been fond of Triptychs – I had a print of Hieronymus Bosch’s “Garden of Earthly Delights” on a wall of my Mission District apartment – it comes easily for me to produce a body of work in this unique style. The triptych, they say, has often been used to convey a spiritual meaning or a narrative. Max Beckmann, the German Expressionist painter, exploited this idea in his triptychs, some of the paintings that most influenced my early photographic work.

And while the viewer may be expecting a story to be told by my triptychs, I had none in mind when I made these. The placement of the three images was driven more by graphic considerations rather than story-telling.

Nonetheless, a story is indeed being told. But that story isn’t mine. Each triptych will mean something different to the person viewing it. At least that is my hope. Perhaps we can compare the stories our minds have invented for each. Will they truly be unique? Or, possibly, will a particular repetitive narrative appear?

One last thought: While the saying has it that a picture is worth a thousand words, I wonder then, is a triptych worth 3,000? The viewer can decide. For inquiries or to read more about the artist, please click on Jeff Heyman