Timeless Process, Timeless Landscape
Denali Diptych piece, two 40”x50” prints from collodion plates
Charles Mason poses with his VW Syncro Westfalia Vanagon as seen through the viewfinder of his 8X10 camera at Creamer's Field Wednesday, August 17, 2022.
The University of Alaska Museum of the North (UAMN) has received a 2024 Alaska Art Fund (AAF) grant, enabling the acquisition of Denali Diptych, a striking wet plate collodion photograph by Charles Mason, Professor of Photography and Department of Science and Environmental Journalism Chair at UAF. This addition highlights the museum’s commitment to preserving and promoting diverse Alaskan art forms.
Mason has been shaping the university’s photography program since 1990. His passion for creative expression led him to embrace collodion photography, a meticulous 19th-century technique that balances technical precision with artistic serendipity.
Denali Diptych, crafted during Mason’s 2018 artist residency in Denali National Park, exemplifies this approach. By coating glass or metal plates with collodion, sensitizing them with silver nitrate, and developing them within minutes, Mason captures a raw, textured beauty often lost in modern digital perfection. His works reflect the unpredictability of the Alaskan wilderness, making each image unique and alive with natural imperfections.
“The thing that bugs me [about modern photography] is it’s so perfect,” Mason explained in an interview for Aurora Magazine. “It’s really hard to screw up in an interesting way.” This philosophy led him to the collodion process, which he described as offering “big helpings of uncertainty, blending technical photography with art.”
Mason’s embrace of the process stems from his appreciation for the unexpected textures and imperfections it creates. “If you plan it, then it becomes contrived,” he said. “If you just let it happen, it’s the gods helping you out.”
Museums Alaska administers the AAF program, partnering with the Rasmuson Foundation to fund acquisitions that enrich museum collections across the state. Since its inception, the program has elevated Alaska’s arts economy and preserved its cultural heritage. The Rasmuson Foundation, established in 1955, remains a cornerstone supporter of Alaskan art, funding initiatives that connect communities and showcase local creativity.
Denali Diptych joins the UAMN’s permanent collection alongside other works celebrating Alaskan artistry. Mason’s contribution offers viewers a layered narrative of Denali—capturing not just its grandeur but the fleeting, imperfect beauty that defines the Alaskan experience.
Charles Mason poses with his 8X10 camera and VW Syncro Westfalia Vanagon at Creamer's Field Wednesday, August 17, 2022.
About Charles Mason
Charles Mason resides in Fairbanks, Alaska, and has taught photography and photojournalism at the University of Alaska Fairbanks for over 30 years.
His assignment work has been featured in many publications, including Time, Outside, LIFE, Sports Illustrated, Newsweek, the New York Times, the Washington Post, and others. Mason's photographs were featured in the Pictures of the Year issues of Time, LIFE, and Stern.
Mason won the Oskar Barnack Award in 1989 for his series on the Barrow, Alaska Whale Rescue. His work has received awards at World Press Photo and POY.
Mason's personal work includes series on Zoos, Kudzu, Circus, and Street Work. He is now absorbed in making 8x10 Collodion portraits, along with social and natural landscapes in Alaska.