Storm Cell Over the House Range, Utah, 2016Fine Art Black and White Photographs of Utah

On the occasion of the INFOCUS photobid auction in November of 2017 at the Phoenix Art Museum, Rebecca Senf, Norton Family Curator of Photography, commented on Storm Cell Over the House Range, Utah, 2016:

[Stephen Ashley's] direct photographic style eloquently conveys the grandeur of the views he selects.

Ashley made this photograph, Storm Cell Over the House Range, Utah, while traveling on U.S. Highway 50, a stretch of road once deemed by Life Magazine “the loneliest road in America.” He recalls that as he drove across the Nevada border the distant weather commanded his attention. Over the mountains he saw the clouds gathering, throwing a distinct shadow on the peaks below. Transparent wisps of rain, illuminated by the afternoon sun, gave definition to the scene, which presented a compelling and dramatic composition to Ashley’s lens.

When I first saw Stephen Ashley’s work, . . . I was captivated by the clean compositions, handling of light, and crisp and textured detail. It was clear that he had a good vision, a direct approach to the subject matter, and a strong technique that allowed him to convey the emotions he was feeling when he made a picture.