1911

Brett Weston is born in Los Angeles, California, the second of Edward Weston’s four sons.

1925

Edward removes Brett from school and takes him to Mexico where they live and work with revolutionary artists such as, Tina Modotti, Jose Clemente Orozco, Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera. Influenced by his new surroundings and the modernist work of these artists, he begins to photograph. His interest, evident even in these first pictures and continuing throughout his six and a half decades of working, is in the graphic arrangement of elemental forms, often manifesting in highly abstract images.

1927

Edward and Brett return to California, working in the Weston portrait studio. Impressed by the strength of his son’s images, Edward includes some of Brett’s pictures in an exhibit of his at the University of California in Los Angeles. Two years later, Brett’s work is included in the historic avant- garde exhibit, Film und Foto, held in Stuttgard, Germany.

1929

Brett and his father move to Carmel, California. The rest of the Weston family will eventually follow them, continuing to live there the rest of their lives. The following year Brett opens his own studio in Santa Barbara, California.

1932

The first major solo exhibition of Brett’s work is held at the M. H. De Young Memorial Museum, San Francisco. Shortly following this exhibit, the f/64 group includes his work in a show at the same museum.

Late1930s

During the Great Depression, Brett becomes the supervisor of the photographic section for the Federal Art Project. He trains, criticizes, and oversees twenty photographers.

1941

The army drafts Brett and stations him in New York City. After several years of basic training, he is finally ordered to a photographic unit of the Signal Corps stationed in Long Island. His commanding officer is, Arthur Rothstein, formerly a photographer for the Farm Security Administration who knows of Brett. Rothstein assigns Brett to photographing New York City.

1947

Brett receives a Guggenheim Fellowship, which he uses to photograph the East Coast. Following this, Brett moves to Carmel to pursue fine art. He begins to make wood sculptures, which are influenced by his photographs.

1950s and 1970s

During this period, Brett’s style changes dramatically, becoming more abstract and characterized by high contrast. He continues to photograph subjects similar to his early work, but moves closer to the material, focusing on form and visual problems.

1973

Brett wins a National Endowment for the Humanities grant, which sponsors an extended photographic tour of Alaska.

Late 1970s

Relishing the artistic potential of the lush environment, Brett begins to spend most of his time in Hawaii.

1993

Brett passes away in his home in Kona, Hawaii. Prior to his death, he destroys most of his negatives, claiming that, “Nobody can print it the way I do – it wouldn’t be my work”.