World's Oldest Fine-Art Photography Gallery

In 1969, when fine-art photography was still struggling for recognition in the mainstream art world, Hal Gould and the Colorado Photographic Arts Center opened Camera Obscura Gallery in Denver — what would become the world's longest-running gallery dedicated exclusively to fine-art photography.

For over four decades, Hal championed photographers who were pushing the boundaries of the medium, representing artists whose work now hangs in major museums and private collections worldwide. Camera Obscura became a destination for collectors, curators, and photographers who understood that photography deserved the same serious consideration as painting or sculpture.

This interview, conducted shortly before Hal closed the gallery's doors in 2012, is both a celebration of an extraordinary career and a meditation on what it takes to sustain a vision over decades. Hal reflects on the photographers who shaped the gallery's identity, the collectors who made it possible, and what the closure of Camera Obscura means for the future of fine-art photography in America.