Tom Baril

Tom Baril (born 1952) is an American photographer known for his photographs of flowers, landscapes, and architecture. Based in New York, he creates work characterized by textural detail and soft focus, often using a handmade pinhole camera.

He worked for a decade as Robert Mapplethorpe's printer, developing technical printing skills, before establishing himself as an independent artist.

Early life and education Baril was born in Putnam, Connecticut The working relationship lasted 10 years. Mapplethorpe confined Baril to the darkroom, communicated with him through third parties, and often paid him late, but Baril stayed on. During this period, Baril's own photography was overshadowed by Mapplethorpe's, and he essentially paused his career.

Baril's technical skill was widely recognized, and Mapplethorpe was praised for the quality of the printing. Mapplethorpe's aesthetic demands were specific: he wanted "everything to look beautiful", whether flowers, faces, or figure studies. Baril and Mapplethorpe connected over their shared appreciation of classical tradition. including such industrial subjects as the Brooklyn Bridge, the Verrazzano–Narrows Bridge, and steel mills. His work has been described as "quietly contemplative" in contrast to Mapplethorpe's "loudly transgressive" images.

Baril's printing technique uses selenium toner, followed by a tea bath, to give the prints warmer, deeper tones. Benton Museum of Art, University of Connecticut Bibliothèque nationale de France, Paris Brooklyn Museum, New York Delaware Art Museum, Wilmington Harvard Art Museums, Cambridge, Massachusetts Philadelphia Museum of Art, Philadelphia

Publications Tom Baril (1997). 4AD. . Botanica (2000). Arena Editions. .