Surf, North Coast

1937 · Photograph

Can I see it?

Not on view at present

Where is “Surf, North Coast” now? Collection: National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C. Not on view at present. Checked September 29, 2026.

National Gallery of Art

Washington, D.C., United States

It belongs to the collection, but is not on display at present.

Checked: 10 days ago
In this state since: Aug 19, 2026
Source: The museum

On the map Museum page

Details

Accession number: 2020.29.80

What it shows

California Ocean Wave Nature

In the catalog

Photographs Gelatin silver print Modernism 20th century American

Sources

National Gallery of Art
Image: National Gallery of Art — © the artist or rights holder

In the life of Edward Weston

The whole life

January 1935
From Carmel to Santa Monica Canyon
Facing mounting financial difficulties, Weston closes his studio in Carmel and moves to Santa Monica Canyon, California, where he opens a new studio with Brett.
August 1935
Charis Wilson agrees to live with him
Weston had implored Charis Wilson to come and live with him, and in August 1935 she finally agrees. Of all the women he has lived with since Flora, she is the first with no interest in becoming a photographer; this lets him concentrate on her as his muse and model, while Wilson devotes her time to promoting his art as his assistant and quasi-agent.
1937 · Award
Guggenheim Fellowship
22 March 1937
News of the Guggenheim grant: two thousand dollars
On 22 March 1937 Weston learns he has been awarded a Guggenheim grant, the first ever given to a photographer: $2,000 for one year, a significant sum at the time. He capitalises on it further by arranging to supply the editor of AAA Westway Magazine with 8–10 photographs a month for $50 during their travels, with Wilson earning another $15 a month for captions and short narratives. They buy a new car and set out on Weston’s dream trip to photograph whatever he wants.
1937–1939
Nearly 1,400 negatives in two years on the fellowship
The first photographer to receive a Guggenheim Fellowship, he produces nearly 1,400 negatives over the next two years with his 8 × 10 view camera.
24 April 1939
Marries Charis Wilson
Finally relieved of past financial stress and inordinately happy with both his work and his relationship, Weston marries Wilson in a small ceremony on 24 April.