http://oac.cdlib.org/findaid/ark:/13030/c8z039gb No online items Inventory of the Norman E. Riley Papers and Photographs D-550 Liz Phillips and Patricia C. Inouye University of California, Davis Library, Dept. of Special Collections 2018 1st Floor, Shields Library, University of California 100 North West Quad Davis, CA 95616-5292 [email protected] URL: http://www.lib.ucdavis.edu/dept/specol/ Inventory of the Norman E. Riley D-550 1 Papers and Photographs D-550 Language of Material: English Contributing Institution: University of California, Davis Library, Dept. of Special Collections Title: Norman E. Riley Papers and Photographs Creator: Riley, Norman Identifier/Call Number: D-550 Physical Description: 2.4 linear feet Date (inclusive): 1982-2004 Abstract: The collection includes photographs of California, especially Davis and Sacramento, cityscapes, landscapes, still lifes, and portraits taken by the photographer Norman E. Riley. Biography Norman Edward Riley was born in Munich, Germany on January 11, 1954. He graduated from UC Davis in 1978, majoring in Environmental Toxicology. He worked for the State of California for 25 years, during this time Riley took up the 35mm camera and, through book-reading and practice, taught himself the principles and techniques of photography. He worked initially in the pictorial style and focused mainly on portraiture but also spent a considerable amount of time shooting scenes in and around both Davis, California and Sacramento, California In 1984 he advanced to large format work and thereafter, working in the f/64 style, concentrated on architectural studies and landscapes primarily in the Western United States and in Europe. From 2006 to 2011, Riley turned almost exclusively to still life work in which he combined things living or derived from living things with bits and pieces of scrap metal to produce unique sculptures which he then photographed. His work has appeared in various publications (e.g., the German periodical "Fine Art Foto," and the American magazine "View Camera"). In 2011, samples of his still life photographs were included in the permanent collections of the San Luis Obispo Museum of Art in San Luis Obispo, California and the Museum of Northwest Art in La Conner, Washington. His first book, titled "Prophet Theory" was be published in 2013. Scope and Content of Collection The collection consists of photographs taken by Norman E. Riley between 1980 and 2013. Sujbects include California, especially Davis and Sacramento; the western United States; European cities; still lifes; and portraits of family and friends. The collection is primarily photographic negatives in small, medium, and large formats but also includes with silver gelatin prints from select negatives. Arrangement The collection is divided into six sections identified by the donor. Currently, the collection consists of Parts I, II, III, and IV. Parts V and VI will form a later donation. Part I is made up entirely of black and white 35mm negatives and selected prints from those negatives. Part II comprises 35mm color negatives and representative prints, and 120 format black and white negatives and corresponding prints. Part III is made up of 4x5 black and white negatives and related prints. Part IV contains both 8x10 black and white negatives and prints from those negatives. Related Materials Web archive of artist's website: Norman Riley Photography, https://wayback.archive-it.org/5780/*/http://normanrileyphotography.com/ Acquisition Information Gift of Norman E. Riley, 2012-2014. Access Collection is open for research. Preferred Citation [Identification of item], Norman E. Riley Papers and Photographs, D-550, Archives and Special Collections, UC Davis Library, University of California, Davis. Publication Rights All applicable copyrights for the collection are protected under chapter 17 of the U.S. Copyright Code. Requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Head of Special Collections. Permission for publication is given on behalf of the Regents of the University of California as the owner of the physical items. It is not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained by the researcher. Subjects and Indexing Terms Davis (Calif.) -- Pictorial works Inventory of the Norman E. Riley D-550 2 Papers and Photographs D-550 Sacramento (Calif.) -- Pictorial works Riley, Norman -- Archives Inventory of the Norman E. Riley D-550 3 Papers and Photographs D-550 Group I 1981-1996 NR35-001 July 23, 1982 Group I 1981-1996 Physical Description: 5,143 negativesblack and white35 mm Physical Description: 17 photographic printsblack and white Scope and Contents There are 5,143 black and white 35mm negatives stored in 236 separate sheets in this Part I of the collection. No effort was made to arrange the sheets in chronological order; however, the negatives are organized so that in most cases those grouped together in a single sheet originate from the same roll of film. The information regarding film type, speed settings, filter use, and processing methods below was taken directly from the notes on the glassine envelopes in which the 35mm negatives were originally stored, or from notebooks or diaries kept by the photographer. The works are dated precisely where notes on the original glassine envelopes or entries in notebooks and diaries supported such identification. In other cases, dates were determined (e.g., "1984") or estimated (e.g., "circa 1984") based on information known to the photographer. Riley used commercially-available films in cartridges for his 35mm work. At the time these negatives were made, the black and white 35mm roll films Riley used were sold in lengths of 20 or 36 exposures, and the negatives are numbered 1 through 20 or 1 through 36 accordingly. The negatives are arranged in numerical order in each sheet. Exceptions to this rule occur in a few cases where negatives from different rolls have been grouped together in a single sheet. In such instances, the negatives are arranged in the sheet in the same order as described in the table. (For example, see NR35-055 and NR35-235.) Occasionally, the viewer will see reference to negative numbers "0," "21," and "37". This simply means that in such cases the photographer was able to get an additional exposure or two on the roll because less of the film leader was wound onto the take-up spool. Where a 35mm negative number is missing from a sequence either: (1) the negative was withheld because it was still being actively printed at the time Part I was assembled (negatives initially withheld will be included in Part V or Part VI of the collection); (2) the negative was intentionally or accidentally not exposed; or (3) the negative was intentionally discarded. The 17 photographs presented in Part I are from negatives in Part I of the collection. Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements All of the prints in Part I are dry-mounted on 100% acid and lignin-free, white cotton rag boards of 4-ply thickness, buffered with calcium carbonate. Some of the boards were obtained from "Archival Methods" in Henrietta, New York, others were obtained from Light Impressions in Rochester, New York. The dry mount tissue used in every case is Seal/Bienfang MT-5. With the exception of one image printed on Forte paper, the prints in Part I are either vintage prints on Ektalure G processed in either Dektol or Selectol, or new prints made on: (1) old Ektalure G stock developed in Ansco 103; (2) Ilford MGIV developed in Ansco 103; or (3) Ilford MG Art developed in Ansco 103. All prints were toned in a selenium bath. In cases where spotting was required, "Spotone" fluid manufactured by Retouch Methods Co., Inc. in Chatham, New Jersey was used. Each mount is stamped on the back with black Sanford ink. The title of the image, the identification number corresponding to the negative from which the print was made, and the dates of the negative and print are written in pencil inside the stamped area. The finished photographs are each stored in a polyethylene sleeve, and together the 17 photographs are contained in a grey, 3-inch drop front archival box from Archival Methods. Key to Abbreviations "1:0" refers to a developer made to full strength without dilution. "1:1" means one part full strength developer diluted with one equal part of water (e.g., 300 ml developer + 300 ml water for a total of 600 ml of working solution). "1:2" means one part full strength developer with 2 parts water (for example, 200 ml of developer + 400 ml of water for a total of 600 ml of working solution). In those cases where Riley experimented with mixing developers, 1:1 means equal parts of each developer at full solution strength were used. "120 format" refers to a film imaging format of medium size. See: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/120_film "4x5" refers to a "large format" film 4x5 inches (102x127mm) in size. See: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Large_format "25A" refers to a medium red-colored contrast control glass filter made by Tokina Co., Ltd., Inventory of the Norman E. RileyJapan. D-550 4 Papers and Photographs D-550 "35mm" film is a "small format" film with a full-frame image approximately 24x36 mm in size. See: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/135_film "8x10" refers to a large format negative 8x10 inches (20x25 cm) in size. See: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Large_format "80B" refers to a light blue-colored contrast control glass filter made by Ampro Corp., USA. "Acufine" is a trademark name for a proprietary, high-acutance, ultrafine-grain, black and white film developer manufactured (at that time) by Baumann Photo-Chemical Corporation in Chicago, Illinois. Acufine is not a MQ developer.