Dean Fidelman’s portraiture has captured the spirit of Yosemite like no other. While Jonny-Come-Latelies might know Fidelman only as the Dean Potter Whisperer from HBO’s 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘋𝘢𝘳𝘬 𝘞𝘪𝘻𝘢𝘳𝘥, he has been 𝘛𝘩𝘦 Valley Photographer for over 50 years.
Fidelman has a connection to Yosemite that only longevity can confer: he is one of the few climbers and photographers whose career overlapped with the Stonemasters, the Stone Monkeys, and the generation of today.
In this interview with Fidelman, we chat about the importance of stories, his photographic journey, and coming up in Yosemite. You can see his portraiture in the latest issue of 𝘚𝘶𝘮𝘮𝘪𝘵 𝘑𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘯𝘢𝘭, in the photo gallery, “The More Things Change: New Faces, Same Spirit. A Portrait of Yosemite Culture,” accompanied by an essay written by Katie Stockton.
————
Dean Fidelman has been climbing and photographing climbers for more than 40 years. When he was 16 years old, he befriended legendary Yosemite climbers John Bachar and John Long, and his photographic documentation of the legendary Stone Masters began. He's been capturing climbers ever since.
Fidelman is perhaps best known for his Stone Nudes series of fine-art black-and-white bouldering photographs. In 2023, his retrospective, Fidelman: A Body of Work, was published by Di Angelo Publications.
Summit Journal: Katy Stockton’s essay in the latest issue opens with: “To live in Yosemite Valley six months of the year is to travel the world. A constant stream of eclectic characters.” You’ve lived in or visited Yosemite for over 50 years, as well as traveled extensively. Do you agree with her characterization?
Dean Fidelman: I definitely feel that way, too. So many of my friends, both climbing and creative, are from somewhere else. Yosemite is that cathedral they journey to and practice their passion; there’s a magic here, and a community that draws people toward testing and expressing themselves.
SJ: You’re one of the few climbers whose career overlapped with the Stonemasters, the Stone Monkeys, and now, today’s generation. In what ways has the spirit of Yosemite lived on? How has it evolved in your time there?
DF: The current generation of climbers feels very inclusive. In the past, climbing in Yosemite was somewhat exclusive; elitism has been replaced with kindness and acceptance. There’s a broader sense of community that allows for greater self-expression. Our common bond is the stone, but the spirit of Yosemite is inside our hearts. Climbers have become the Valley's caretakers in so many ways.
SJ: Stockton continues, “Over the years, I've begun to have deja vu: the same party, same conversations, same spirit. Some things repeat, an endless loop. But the faces — those change.” What’s your experience been like?
DF: It’s called “Valley time” for a reason. Yosemite changes so very slowly; it’s the people that come and go, a proving ground for their passion, a stop on someone's life journey, conversations in the cathedral. Many friends from my past lives here have made the pilgrimage back to Yosemite, feeling the passage of their time here, reimagining those days. You can go back, but nothing is really the same.
SJ: In a Gripped interview, you were quoted, “You need writing, filming, photography, things that challenge you. You also need the aspect of art.” What is it about climbing that makes it so artistic to you, and worthy of chronicling?
DF: Climbing is Dance, movement is Art. Self-expression and the struggle to be free are the bedrock of art and climbing — all of this becomes a canvas, and we are the paint. The details are what make up the picture. Our stories, photographs, legends, and history have always fascinated me; a desire to push my limits artistically led me to create a body of work centered on climbing. Someone had to step up and tie in to the sharp end. It took a lot of hands to make that knot; all of us are worthy.
SJ: Along those lines, what is your definition of art?
DF: Intention, self-expression, and not caring if you fail.
SJ: You worked in fashion, in places like New York and Madrid. What did you learn in this environment that you brought back to The Valley?
DF: I learned my craft in NYC by working for, and hanging out with, artists and photographers that I admired and who were very high on the art-editorial-fashion food chain. Everything I know about the approach and style of a photograph, I learned in NYC and Europe.
I also seek out museums and exhibitions, always looking and learning. Every time I pick up a camera, all of this experience goes into the photograph in front of me. My flow state happens because of what came before.
SJ: There’s a bit of a Classical Greek aesthetic about your black and white images (musculature and sinew, proud poses, etc.). You’ve said these images have “less to do with the naked body and more with the contours, tones of the rock, holds, and texture.” To elaborate on this, what do you look for in subjects specifically, and in the setting?
DF: Balance, that moment when everything is perfect. Mind, body, light, and landscape, extracted in harmony with each other. Movement brings this balance; the stillness of a photograph allows us to meditate on that 1/10,000th second.
SJ: Often, the “characters” in your portraits have pronounced expressions; naturally, they don’t seem like an affectation. Said another way, I perceive a lot of depth in the subject (in contrast to the volume of generic-seeming street photography portraits one sees these days). Is this only possible by knowing these people so intimately?
DF: Photography is a conversation; portraits are an intimate discussion about being vulnerable in front of a camera. I want to let you see how I see you, to know that you were born perfect, and the light that's reflected into my camera is your light. You don't have to know someone to see their light; trust will unlock the soul.
SJ: You’ve put out 20 Stone Nudes calendars — and a retrospective book! Will you still be doing calendars, or, what’s next for Stone Nudes?
DF: I’m not certain if I’ll return to a calendar format. I do enjoy making books very much, guess that makes me old school, but there’s something about them that feels real.
Currently, I’m working on The History of the Nose with John Long, and Hans Florine. It’s going to be a big and beautiful book. I’m also continuing to make Stone Nudes and Landscape Nudes for a book called Valley Muse. Portraits are what I’ve been leaning into recently, that conversation in our cathedral, always looking for the light.
SJ: Anything you’d like to leave readers with?
DF: If you see me wandering in the Valley, say hello. . .df
There’s only one way to read 📖
Summit Journal provides an outlet for the kind of narratives that need space to be told. Writers and photographers like Bernadette McDonald, Alex Buisse, Owen Clarke, Corey Buhay, Astra Lincoln, and many more, are some of the best slingers of longform narrative out there today.
But to read their work you need to subscribe.
Support independent climbing media. Long live longform.