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Eric Brody, MD

Contributor's Note

I retired from pediatric practice at Northwest Permanente in 2002. I spent a wonderful 23 years caring for children. I had been doing photography for over fifty years. I was ten when I was introduced to the magical process that takes place when light-exposed photographic paper is placed into developer.

When I arrived in Portland in 1979 from the Chicago flatlands to work at NWP, I began using a large format 4x5 camera and fell in love with the local landscape. I spent countless hours on Mt Hood, on the Oregon coast, and in the Columbia Gorge making photographs. I traveled in the desert southwest, and in California and studied with some superb fine art photographers including John Sexton, Bruce Barnbaum, Ray McSavaney and Stu Levy. I now photograph with digital equipment, and print with a pigment printer. I am privileged to exhibit my work locally from time to time. 

Canyon de Chelly Petroglyphs

Artwork, Volume 2; Issue 2

Canyon de Chelly Petroglyphs

photograph

It was on a workshop in Canyon de Chelly in Arizona that I had a chance to photograph the Narbona panel. We traveled through the floor of the Canyon with a Navajo guide who told us the history and anthropology of each photographic location. The stories were inspiring and sometimes heartbreaking. The Narbona panel is a striking, large piece of rock art above the canyon floor, accessible only with a Navajo guide. It commemorates a massacre. In 1805, a Spanish expedition led by Lt Antonio Narbona fought an all-day battle with the Navajo, killing 105 people. The detail in the image is striking; even the trigger of the guns is visible on the rock surface. The ubiquitous Spanish cross is seen on another rider. It is a striking document of the cruel treatment of Native Americans in the early 19th century.

Photographing in such places is inspiring. To communicate the true spirit of the scene, a photographer must combine the technical aspects of the craft with artistic vision. The viewer is the judge of one’s success. 

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