Ray Belcher (American, b. 1944) – “Devil’s Spine”

Medium: Silver Gelatin Photograph
Negative Date: 1981
Print Date: 1985
Print Number: 4
Signature: Signed in pencil lower right, “R. Belcher”
Provenance: Rettig y Martinez Gallery, Santa Fe, New Mexico (accompanied by original 1989 gallery receipt)
Condition: Good, minor frame scuffing
Size: Overall: 31.25" × 36.75" | Visible: 13.75" × 17.25"

A dramatic black-and-white silver gelatin photograph by American fine art photographer Ray Belcher, titled “Devil’s Spine.”
Shot in 1981 and printed in 1985, this image exemplifies Belcher’s precision and eye for the elemental beauty of the American Southwest. The composition follows a rugged ridgeline receding into the desert horizon, framed by massive foreground boulders that lead the viewer’s gaze through the depth and geometry of the land.

Belcher’s careful manipulation of contrast and texture captures the desert’s timeless austerity — a dialogue of light, shadow, and form. His approach reflects the contemplative tradition of Western landscape photography, while maintaining a distinctly personal voice grounded in the stark, meditative silence of New Mexico’s terrain.

Artist Background

Born in 1944, Ray Belcher grew up on the New Jersey shore and later studied photography in Berkeley, California, and at the San Francisco Art Institute. After serving in the U.S. Navy, he relocated to New Mexico in 1976, where the vast, luminous landscapes inspired his lifelong body of work.

Belcher is renowned for his dedication to traditional silver gelatin printing, producing meticulously hand-crafted darkroom prints that emphasize tonal precision and depth. His work is represented in prominent collections, including the New Mexico Museum of Art, which holds his photograph “Moonset” (1978).

Provenance

Purchased directly from Rettig y Martinez Gallery, Santa Fe, NM.
Original dated receipt (April 20, 1989) documents the sale of “Ray Belcher, ‘Devil’s Spine,’ silver gelatin photograph, negative 1981, print #4, 1985, 14” × 18” unframed” for $600 (plus NM Gross Receipts Tax: $33.75).

Remarks

An early and exemplary work by Ray Belcher, “Devil’s Spine” embodies the artist’s reverent vision of the New Mexico landscape — austere, vast, and alive with light. With verified provenance, artist’s signature, and fine presentation, this print offers both aesthetic and collectible significance to admirers of classic Southwestern photography.