Ancient Towers

Jim Hilgendorf visited remote Western forests to capture images or ‘Bristlecone Pine Trees.’

By: Susan Van Dongen

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Images (above and below) from Jim Hilgendorf’s Bristlecone Pine Trees at Gallery 14 in Hopewell.


   A new series of photographs capturing the ancient Bristlecone Pine trees of the American West is a departure for photographer Jim Hilgendorf.
   "I’m not typically a landscape photographer," he says. "I consider myself more of a street or people photographer."
   But the closer he looked at the trees, the more humanity he saw in them. Like the skin on faces of the elderly — especially people whose lives have been spent mostly outdoors — the bark on the trees was furrowed with deep "character lines."
   "When you get close up to them you see that they have wonderful details, all wind-blown and weathered and gnarled," Mr. Hilgendorf says. "You can just see the age seeping out of them."

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   These 4,000-year-old trees have fascinated the photographer since 1973, when he first stumbled upon a grove of "the ancients" in the White Mountains of California. More recently, Mr. Hilgendorf was able to revisit and photograph this forest as well as two others — Bryce National Park in Utah and Windy Ridge. The result is Bristlecone Pine Trees, a series of black-and-white photographs on view at Gallery 14 in Hopewell through May 29.
   Also at Gallery 14 is Light Caresses, a series of black-and-white images by Philadelphia-based photographer Mark S. Fields.
   The ancient trees depicted in Mr. Hilgendorf’s photos are considered the oldest living inhabitants of the earth, and include "Methuselah," which was found to be more than 4,700 years old. As a result of living in cold, windy, dry climates, usually in high elevations, their branches have aged into abstract shapes. The photographs reveal the knotted, grainy natural designs on their surfaces.

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   Often, the twisted, leafless branches poke into the dramatic skies like minarets, or reach out like old fingers on a giant’s hand.
   "I fell in love with these trees over 30 years ago when I had the chance to go camping out West and we came across this forest in the White Mountains of California," Mr. Hilgendorf says. "We spent the night there. Back then, Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest wasn’t a well-known park and we were the only people in the forest that night, which was an inspiring experience. It was just an amazing thing to be surrounded by these trees that were thousands of years old. I wasn’t able to go back until last year, though."
   Fortunately, the ancient trees exist in such isolated areas, their habitats aren’t threatened with development and pollution. Like wise old wizards sitting atop a mountain, they’re off to themselves and difficult to reach.

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   "I don’t see too many environmental concerns," Mr. Hilgendorf says. "On the other hand, even though they’re remote, they’re attracting more and more people. The very oldest one, which was called ‘Prometheus,’ was actually killed by a geologist some years ago, so now (the park rangers) protect the older trees by not letting you know where they are. Currently the oldest one is ‘Methuselah,’ also very difficult to find. In general, the Bristlecone Pine Forests still doesn’t have a lot of visitors. It’s not like the Grand Canyon or Yellowstone."
   Mr. Hilgendorf has been enthusiastic about photography from a young age when he traveled and lived around the world with his mother and father, who worked for an oil company. In his youth, he took classes in commercial photography at the New York Institute of Photography when it still had a school in the Empire State Building. He also studied at the International Center of Photography in New York with Sally Gall, among others.

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   "I’ve taken quite a few courses at ICP," Mr. Hilgendorf says. "Since they moved downtown, they have wonderful facilities and some of the best teachers in the world."
   Mr. Hilgendorf has shown his work several times at Gallery 14, including last year’s exhibit, The 29 Stations of the Yamanote Line, which examined the modern, overhead rail line that conveys passengers in and around Tokyo. Formerly employed by Exxon, Mr. Hilgendorf was inspired to create the railroad series after living in Japan and other Asian countries for some 25 years. But Mr. Hilgendorf said the idea for 29 Stations was sparked even earlier when he discovered artwork by Japanese woodblock artist Ando Hiroshige, documenting the roads between Tokyo and Kyoto.
   "There’s such a rich history of artwork in Japan," he says. "When we lived there, we spent a lot of time going to galleries and museums."
   He also exhibited at Phillips’ Mill in New Hope, Pa., the Central Pennsylvania Festival of the Arts in State College and the Washington Gallery of Photography in Bethesda, Md. In 2001, Mr. Hilgendorf had a one-person show at the Genkan Gallery in Tokyo.
   One of his strongest influences is Sebastiao Salgado, the Paris-based, Brazilian-born photojournalist who documented the plight of miners and other laborers in Brazil in the early 1990s.
   "Like myself, he mostly photographs people," Mr. Hilgendorf says. "He’s able to capture people in a way that really says something about them, portrays something about their feelings and inner workings. He’s also a wonderful printer — or whoever prints for him does a terrific job. That’s something I’m trying to master."
   Working with a Hasselblad and, more recently, a Contax 645, Mr. Hilgendorf prefers manual cameras and the wet darkroom to digital technology.
   "I’m trying to come into the digital age, but slowly," he says. "Sometimes I regret that digital ever came about. It’s a whole new science. Many of the principles are the same but the application is completely different."
   Now that he has retired from corporate life, Mr. Hilgendorf shuttles back and forth between New York and Bucks County, Pa. Discovering the supportive nature and opportunities to exhibit at Gallery 14 was a surprise and delight. It might have even sparked thoughts of a new vocation in the arts.
   "The group at Gallery 14 really inspires us," he says. "It helps to keep each of us working hard at what we do."
Bristlecone Pine Trees by Jim Hilgendorf and Light Caresses by Mark S. Fields is on view at Gallery 14, 14 Mercer St., Hopewell, through May 29. Gallery hours: Sat.-Sun., noon-5 p.m. and by appointment. For information, call (609) 333-8511. On the Web: www.photosgallery14.com. Jim Hilgendorf on the Web: www.jimhilgendorf.com. Mark S. Fields on the Web: www.philadelphiaartist.com