Spencer Ross’s serious interest in photography began in the 1940s when he first began carrying his camera as a constant companion, both while living in the U.S. and traveling extensively abroad. During those years, he visited all five continents, seeking photographic images which could impart a sense of beauty, wonder, or mystery. Immersed in the Greenwich Village photography scene of the 1950s, he studied with such legendary teachers as Lisette Model, Alexey Brodovitch, and Sid Grossman, founder of the Photo League. Grossman had perhaps the greatest influence on him by strengthening the intensity and aspiration which any serious photographer must have for the art. Grossman’s admonition still resonates: “responsibility for every segment of the photograph.”
Ross’s work has been published widely and shown in galleries and museums around the world. In 1960, he was chosen to represent the United States in an issue of Popular Photography magazine devoted to international amateur photography. In an article he wrote for that issue, he noted that the role of the amateur permitted a freedom of expression sometimes not available to the professional, who often must labor under the direction of an art director or client in pursuit of a specific commercial or personal interest.
In addition to Popular Photography, Spencer authored many other articles in publications which featured his work, such as Modern Photography and Leica World. His work was featured in national and local newspapers such as The New York Times and The Minneapolis Tribune, and over 100 galleries and museums in the U.S. and abroad, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the IBM Gallery, exhibited his photographs. His photography was included in the “Photography in the Fine Arts” program sponsored by noted photographer Ivan Dmitri in the 1950s. He was named “one of the young lions of photography” by U.S. Camera and he was named “Photographer of the Month” by Nikon. He was a member of the celebrated Village Camera Club and New York’s photographic salon the Circle of Confusion.
While working for General Electric and living in Venezuela in the late 1940s, he volunteered as Photography Editor and weekly columnist for the Caracas Daily Journal, and founded the local “Club Foto de Caracas” there.
Ross also had a distinguished career in international trade and communications, working with major multinational corporations in senior executive roles, in the U.S. and abroad. He headed the telecommunications marketing unit for the international division of General Electric; led the Commercial and Educational Systems Group for GTE International; served as Vice President of International Marketing Operations for the Bendix Corporation; and was Vice President of Marketing for the Sperry Corporation. He also founded the National Institute for World Trade.
About the Author
Spencer Ross’s serious interest in photography began in the 1940s when he first began carrying his camera as a constant companion, both while living in the U.S. and traveling extensively abroad. During those years, he visited all five continents, seeking photographic images which could impart a sense of beauty, wonder, or mystery. Immersed in the Greenwich Village photography scene of the 1950s, he studied with such legendary teachers as Lisette Model, Alexey Brodovitch, and Sid Grossman, founder of the Photo League. Grossman had perhaps the greatest influence on him by strengthening the intensity and aspiration which any serious photographer must have for the art. Grossman’s admonition still resonates: “responsibility for every segment of the photograph.”
Ross’s work has been published widely and shown in galleries and museums around the world. In 1960, he was chosen to represent the United States in an issue of Popular Photography magazine devoted to international amateur photography. In an article he wrote for that issue, he noted that the role of the amateur permitted a freedom of expression sometimes not available to the professional, who often must labor under the direction of an art director or client in pursuit of a specific commercial or personal interest.
In addition to Popular Photography, Spencer authored many other articles in publications which featured his work, such as Modern Photography and Leica World. His work was featured in national and local newspapers such as The New York Times and The Minneapolis Tribune, and over 100 galleries and museums in the U.S. and abroad, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the IBM Gallery, exhibited his photographs. His photography was included in the “Photography in the Fine Arts” program sponsored by noted photographer Ivan Dmitri in the 1950s. He was named “one of the young lions of photography” by U.S. Camera and he was named “Photographer of the Month” by Nikon. He was a member of the celebrated Village Camera Club and New York’s photographic salon the Circle of Confusion.
While working for General Electric and living in Venezuela in the late 1940s, he volunteered as Photography Editor and weekly columnist for the Caracas Daily Journal, and founded the local “Club Foto de Caracas” there.
Ross also had a distinguished career in international trade and communications, working with major multinational corporations in senior executive roles, in the U.S. and abroad. He headed the telecommunications marketing unit for the international division of General Electric; led the Commercial and Educational Systems Group for GTE International; served as Vice President of International Marketing Operations for the Bendix Corporation; and was Vice President of Marketing for the Sperry Corporation. He also founded the National Institute for World Trade.