Gallen Rowell was one of the most prolific and well known outdoor and nature photographers in the second half of the 20th century. At a time when most outdoor photographers were struggling under the mass of large format photography equipment, Galen combined the emerging lightweight SLR technology with his legendary athletic ability to pioneer a whole new genre of adventure and nature photography. He would often combine his photography with first ascents of remote peaks or expeditions to unexplored regions. Any climbing guidebook for the western United States and Alaska is full of routes he established and climbing literature is full of Galen stories. I actually knew about Galen from his climbing exploits before I was familiar with him as a photographer. His energy, sense of wonder and adventure and commitment to his “on the move” style of photography enabled him to create some of our most iconic images of the Earth’s wild places.
Galen, more than any other photographer, is responsible for my interest in photography and the style and approach I use. But that is nothing unusual in the outdoor photography world. Galen inspired an entire generation of adventure seekers and outdoor photography enthusiasts. Galen was so prolific and his images so enduring that I often have difficulty distinguishing between my own photographic voice and his influence on the way I see a scene, something I find to be a curse and a gift at the same time.
Tragically Galen and his wife, Barbara Cushman Rowell, died in a plane crash near their home in Bishop, California in 2002 while they were both very much in the prime of their creative careers. If you are not already familiar with Galen’s photography you should visit the Web site of his photography business, which he called Mountain Light, at www.mountainlight.com.
Galen and his photography were tightly linked with the Sierra Club. The Sierra Club Website’s new radio show and podcast called Sierra Club Radio, has a recent feature interview with Nicole Rowell-Ryan, Galen Rowell’s daughter. On the show, Ms. Rowell-Ryan talks about her memories of her father as an artist and an adventurer.
You can listen to the interview with Nicole Rowell-Ryan at http://www.sierraclubradio.org/. The show aired on February 3, 2007. The podcast is also available in the iTunes music store- just search for “Sierra Club Radio.”
Here is what the Sierra Club has to say about their new broadcasts:
“The Sierra Club recently launched a weekly radio show which is designed to help meet the mounting demand for “green” news — information Americans can use as consumers, as citizens, as neighbors and parents to make responsible choices and to connect to the growing environmental community. We have posted the podcast on our website, http://www.sierraclub.org, and also on the iTunes music store (just search “Sierra Club”). The show is also broadcast in the San Francisco Bay area on 960am The Quake at 3:30 pm on Saturdays, and is soon to be syndicated on public radio around the country.
The show spotlights in-depth conversations with a wide range of environmental experts and activists, artists, filmmakers, and authors inspired by nature. It also features Sierra Club content – including lifestyle tips from Sierra magazine’s Green Life editor Jennifer Hattam and Mr. Green, Bob Schildgen; in-depth interviews with Sierra Club Books authors and contributors to Sierra magazine; and political observations and commentary by Executive Director Carl Pope. The program highlights stories from the Sierra Club’s conservation work and grassroots fieldwork, and hopefully it will encourage people to think more carefully every day about how we can each do our part to live green and protect the environment.”
