1989 Saint John Spring Convocation
Bruemmer, Fred
Doctor of Letters (D.Litt.)
Orator: Taukulis, Harald K.
Citation:
CONVOCATION, MAY, 1989
FRED BRUEMHER
to be Doctor of Letters
It saddens me a bit when I read an admirer's appraisal of Fred Bruemmer's work, his often astonishing, always remarkable collection of arctic photography, and the appraisal includes the prediction that his pictures will be extremely valuable to succeeding generations, presumably because the life forms whose presence on earth he recorded will gradually disappear. For one group of his subjects, the Inuit, the prophecy has already been partially fulfilled. The Inuit way of life is not what it was when he first left his home to live among them.
For the moment, the indigenous animals and plants of the far north are still there, though in diminishing numbers. I like to think that our descendants will remember Fred Bruemmer, not as a chronicler of a bygone era in natural history, but rather as a man who, through the magic of his artistry, evoked in his nation, and in nations beyond, the desire and, more importantly, the will to protect for posterity the subjects behind the images that have been his consuming passion. A callous individual indeed is he who can look upon a Bruemmer photograph of, say, an arctic fox or a beluga whale and not wish the creature well.
By all accounts, and by his own admission, this man has worked as little as possible since 1951, when he left his job in a gold mine in Kirkland Lake, Ontario. Since the mid-l960's he has, for the most part, been doing what he loves: travelling, exploring, writing, and taking photographs (over a quarter of a million, at last count). As ancient proverbs have it, a task undertaken with joy and enthusiasm is not work, regardless of expended time and energy, or endured hardship.
We see evidence of his Lebensfreude, his love of life, in his field diaries in which he recorded some of his "pep talks to the self." They are reminiscent of Henry David Thoreau, the noted New England naturalist and philosopher of the last century, who was known to lie in bed for a while in the morning, reminding himself that life is good, his work interesting, and that new things waited to be discovered that day. In Fred Bruemmer, Thoreau has found a kindred spirit.
In his relentless pursuit of happiness, while diligently avoiding work, he has written ten books and over six hundred articles in four languages. A much-lauded author, his talent for verbal expression is as keen as his skill at photography. His books include The Lonq Hunt (his first, published in 1969), The Arctic, Children of the North, and most recently, Seasons of the Seal. His lavishly illustrated shorter pieces have been published in the Canadian Geographical Journal, Equinox, Natural History, Audubon, International Wildlife, and many others. The titles have ranged from "The Sleepy Sharks of the Arctic" to "How the Mermaid Perished" to the intriguing "Insel der Pferde, Leichen, und Verbrecher" -- that is, "Island of Horses, Corpses, and Criminals." But while the titles have varied widely, the direction of his vision has varied little: north, north, inexorably north -- Alaska, Greenland, Siberia, and, of course, our own Canadian circumpolar region. His fascination with the arctic has drawn him time and time again to this land of extremes, its harsh beauty seductive but potentially lethal to the unwary. Its allure and his willingness to succumb to it for more than two decades have shaped him into one of the world's foremost experts on arctic natters. He has been called "one of the least-known world-famous men in Canada." His expertise has drawn the attention of scientists around the globe. They have sought him out for the knowledge and experience that few can equal.
We at this university are not the first to recognize his enormous contribution to our understanding of a vast region that most of us will never see. In 1975, he was admitted to the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts, and in 1977 awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal. The Order of Canada was bestowed upon him by an admiring nation in 1984. Today we are extraordinarily pleased to add our plaudits to this list.
Canada gained a great deal when he migrated here on December 31, 1950, from Riga in his native Latvia. It gives me enormous pleasure to present to you, on behalf of this university, Fred Bruemmer, explorer extraordinaire, to be awarded the degree Doctor of Letters (Honoris Causa).
From: Honoris Causa - UA Case 70, Box 2
FRED BRUEMHER
to be Doctor of Letters
It saddens me a bit when I read an admirer's appraisal of Fred Bruemmer's work, his often astonishing, always remarkable collection of arctic photography, and the appraisal includes the prediction that his pictures will be extremely valuable to succeeding generations, presumably because the life forms whose presence on earth he recorded will gradually disappear. For one group of his subjects, the Inuit, the prophecy has already been partially fulfilled. The Inuit way of life is not what it was when he first left his home to live among them.
For the moment, the indigenous animals and plants of the far north are still there, though in diminishing numbers. I like to think that our descendants will remember Fred Bruemmer, not as a chronicler of a bygone era in natural history, but rather as a man who, through the magic of his artistry, evoked in his nation, and in nations beyond, the desire and, more importantly, the will to protect for posterity the subjects behind the images that have been his consuming passion. A callous individual indeed is he who can look upon a Bruemmer photograph of, say, an arctic fox or a beluga whale and not wish the creature well.
By all accounts, and by his own admission, this man has worked as little as possible since 1951, when he left his job in a gold mine in Kirkland Lake, Ontario. Since the mid-l960's he has, for the most part, been doing what he loves: travelling, exploring, writing, and taking photographs (over a quarter of a million, at last count). As ancient proverbs have it, a task undertaken with joy and enthusiasm is not work, regardless of expended time and energy, or endured hardship.
We see evidence of his Lebensfreude, his love of life, in his field diaries in which he recorded some of his "pep talks to the self." They are reminiscent of Henry David Thoreau, the noted New England naturalist and philosopher of the last century, who was known to lie in bed for a while in the morning, reminding himself that life is good, his work interesting, and that new things waited to be discovered that day. In Fred Bruemmer, Thoreau has found a kindred spirit.
In his relentless pursuit of happiness, while diligently avoiding work, he has written ten books and over six hundred articles in four languages. A much-lauded author, his talent for verbal expression is as keen as his skill at photography. His books include The Lonq Hunt (his first, published in 1969), The Arctic, Children of the North, and most recently, Seasons of the Seal. His lavishly illustrated shorter pieces have been published in the Canadian Geographical Journal, Equinox, Natural History, Audubon, International Wildlife, and many others. The titles have ranged from "The Sleepy Sharks of the Arctic" to "How the Mermaid Perished" to the intriguing "Insel der Pferde, Leichen, und Verbrecher" -- that is, "Island of Horses, Corpses, and Criminals." But while the titles have varied widely, the direction of his vision has varied little: north, north, inexorably north -- Alaska, Greenland, Siberia, and, of course, our own Canadian circumpolar region. His fascination with the arctic has drawn him time and time again to this land of extremes, its harsh beauty seductive but potentially lethal to the unwary. Its allure and his willingness to succumb to it for more than two decades have shaped him into one of the world's foremost experts on arctic natters. He has been called "one of the least-known world-famous men in Canada." His expertise has drawn the attention of scientists around the globe. They have sought him out for the knowledge and experience that few can equal.
We at this university are not the first to recognize his enormous contribution to our understanding of a vast region that most of us will never see. In 1975, he was admitted to the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts, and in 1977 awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal. The Order of Canada was bestowed upon him by an admiring nation in 1984. Today we are extraordinarily pleased to add our plaudits to this list.
Canada gained a great deal when he migrated here on December 31, 1950, from Riga in his native Latvia. It gives me enormous pleasure to present to you, on behalf of this university, Fred Bruemmer, explorer extraordinaire, to be awarded the degree Doctor of Letters (Honoris Causa).
From: Honoris Causa - UA Case 70, Box 2
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