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Tom Murphy
Tom Murphy was raised on a 7500 acre cattle ranch in western South Dakota. This experience taught him more than he wanted to know about cattle and convinced him that he didn’t want to chase cows for the rest of his life, but it also provided him with invaluable lessons in animal behavior and a deep love for clean, wide open land. Tom graduated with honors from Montana State University in 1984 with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Anthropology. He spent many years combining photography with archeological field work, locating, recording, and testing historic and prehistoric sites on the northwest plains.
Tom’s interest in photography began in 1972. In 1978 he established a professional career in photography when he moved to Livingston, Montana and built a studio there. His photographic passion and specialty is Yellowstone National Park. Since 1975 he has traveled extensively within its 3400 square miles, hiking thousands of miles and skiing on hundreds of extended overnight trips in the back country. He has skied across the park twice, once on a 14 day solo trip. Two things motivate him to travel carrying a heavy backpack, a desire to see Yellowstone’s wilderness back country, and to photograph the behaviors of free roaming wildlife and the colors, shapes, and textures of the land.
Through Wilderness Photography Expeditions, which he established in 1986, Tom built an internationally respected photography seminar series teaching natural history photography primarily in Yellowstone Park. Tom was the first person licensed to lead photography tours in Yellowstone Park. One of the reasons he started his business was to give something back to wildlife and wild lands and to encourage and aid in their preservation. He donates the use of his photography to environmental groups, to support their efforts. He lends his back country skills to the Park County Search and Rescue team, which he helped to organize in 1982. His photographs have been used, both editorially and commercially, in numerous regional, national, and international publications. Clients include: Life, Architectural Digest, National Geographic, Audubon and Time. Newsweek, The New York Times Magazine, National Geographic Adventure, Esquire and others have sent him on assignments. He was Cameron Diaz’s guide in Yellowstone for an MTV project and he photographed for Meredith Brokaw’s cookbook, Big Sky Cooking.
His first book, Silence and Solitude, Yellowstone’s Winter Wilderness, won a 2002 Montana Book Award. Tom’s video, Silence and Solitude, produced by Montana PBS, earned an Emmy nomination for his photography and videography. His second book, The Light of Spring , The Seasons of Yellowstone, his third book The Comfort of Autumn, and his fourth book, The Abundance of Summer are three of a set of books illustrating the four seasons of Yellowstone, published by Crystal Creek Press. PBS Nature’s show “Christmas in Yellowstone”, first aired nationally on Nov 19 and Dec 24, 2006, and features Tom’s winter photography and some of his back country skiing stories. It is aired internationally each December on PBS.
The work of Tom Murphy is featured in these exhibitions.
(Select the image to view the exhibition page)
Messages From The Wilderness
Designed By Nature
The work of Tom Murphy is featured in these Theme Collections.
(Select the image to view the theme page)
Abstraction – Color
American West
Animals
Environment – Color
Landscape – Color
Tom Murphy - The Journey Through Yellowstone
Thirty years ago, renowned wildlife photographer, Tom Murphy embarked upon the expedition of a lifetime – he skied across Yellowstone National Park, in the dead of winter, by himself with only a blue tarp as a shelter. A life defining trip that has yet to be repeated.
At the age of 66, Tom went back across Yellowstone’s frozen landscape, this time with a film crew to document the journey. The expedition once again took him across the most remote and inaccessible parts of the park. He was pushed to the brink of his endurance and the trip tested his years of backcountry experience.
This film (slated for release late 2016), will document his journey across the park as well as explore Tom’s life as a photographer, his philosophy about nature, wilderness, and his love for the striking beauty and power of Yellowstone’s most unforgiving season – winter.
The journey began Feb. 20th and completed March 6th, traversing 160 miles across Yellowstone. You can see images from the journey on Tom’s TWITTER & INSTAGRAM feeds, a great way to experience the trip with images and commentary from the trail.
The Journey Through Yellowstone | www.yellowstone.film from Rick Smith on Vimeo.
Additional information about Murphy’s work and a recent interview can be found on his Artist Page.
Tom Murphy - Artist Talk @ Lumière May 22nd
Saturday May 22, 2010
11 am – 12 noon
Lumière
The Galleries of Peachtree Hills
425 Peachtree Hills Ave.
Atlanta, GA 30305
Building Five
Tom Murphy was in the gallery and discussed his exhibition that opened May 22nd at the Booth Western Art Museum, in Cartersville GA.
Tom Murphy – comments on his photography 3:12
Murphy’s photography illustrates his passionate love for our wild clean earth. Tom’s understanding of wildlife is apparent from the beginning. He photographs wildlife as they go about their daily lives, patiently waiting for each animal to share its life with him in the wild.
Tom’s images reveal wildlife interacting with each other and with their environment: hunting, eating, drinking, running, plowing through deep snow, giving birth, nursing, playing, resting and sleeping, all in the beauty of the wildest places on earth. His landscapes reflect the natural beauty he finds and loves and works diligently to preserve.
Tom Murphy was raised on a 7500 acre cattle ranch in western South Dakota. This experience taught him more than he wanted to know about cattle and convinced him that he didn’t want to chase cows for the rest of his life, but it also provided him with invaluable lessons in animal behavior and a deep love for clean, wide open land.
