WHAT LIES BENEATH A look at artist Chris Leidy’s new book, The Coral Triangle (Assouline), and stories about his underwater adventures. by alex TraverS

The Adirondack Park, which is larger in land mass than the state of Massachusetts, was officially formed in 1892, and its eccentric and excessive character began long before that. Over half of its 6+ million acres remain in private hands, mostly as summer “camps”—the rustic masterpieces that blur the lines between civilization and wilderness—still owned by family trusts that bear the names of Morgan, Vanderbilt, Bixby, Depew and Rockefeller. Their cottages were most often constructed with barkcovered logs and twig trimmings, yet inside you might easily find gold plated faucets, sterling settings, and Tiffany lamps. The spirit of these camps remains stubbornly traditional and low key, and their most coveted quality is privacy—the perfect tonic for this post-COVID summer—in a fabled forest where social distancing has been the norm for well over a century. Adirondack camps are often passed down through four or five generations, complete with the beaten-up Victorian furniture, hard-backed Stickley chairs, and long-standing friendships between neighboring families. And the mishmash of a camp’s outbuildings, boathouses, and acreage create a natural setting for legendary family gatherings and house parties. But the height of this North Country paradise is its great out-of-doors, where the hunting and fishing, climbing and canoeing, skating and snowshoeing, sailing and swimming (and latenight skinny dipping) releases the inner soul of even the most uptight urban swell. Maybe its spell lies in the water, or in the crisp mountain air, but for the most authentic Adirondackers (Mohican Indian for “barkeaters”) their attachment to these mountains is based on the same two themes: “history and family…all that money cannot buy.”

This page, clockwise from above: Margaret Vanderbilt used to say she liked every game in the world, as evidenced by the 1901 playroom at Camp Sagamore; vintage pack baskets line the hallway of Sunset Hill, where the Cheney/Learned clan has spent their summers for six generations; a sign that encourages people to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in the Adirondacks; the Saratoga Springs Public Library is recording stories of the COVID-19 pandemic so future generations can benefit from understanding our experiences. Opposite page: At Bolton Landing on Lake George, two brothers and their dogs race laps around their island in a 1937 HackerCraft and a 1937 Chris-Craft; five generations of Korffs have warmed themselves before the fire at Freiheit Schloss, built in 1884 (inset).

WHAT LIES BENEATH

BY ALEX TRAVERS

WHEN CHRIS LEIDY swims with sharks and whales and other creatures of the sea his focus is on his breath. As a photographer, he has to be aware of his demeanor underwater, trying not to frighten away species with a stream of bubbles, swimming rhythmically so that his subjects will begin to present themselves.

Leidy actually prefers to shoot in shallow waters. He says it offers a strong ambient light. “It’s an artistic playground in the shallows,” he enthuses, creating natural reflections from the underside of the ocean’s surface. The deep, however, allows him to find an array of difference species and colors.

In a series of dives that took place in the Coral Triangle— the waters that cradle much of Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, and Timor-Leste—Leidy took pictures of sharks, coral, turtles, and whales. Sometimes he is featured with them, allowing viewers to share his experiences.

The images also invite us to see the fragility of the

Coral Triangle, drawing awareness to the reef’s preservation needs. His collection of photographs, both striking and vivid, were recently published in Chris Leidy The Coral Triangle (Assouline), with some proceeds being donated to the Fabien Cousteau Ocean Learning Center. (Cousteau also wrote the introduction in the book.)

Leidy, who has been diving since he was four, uses a Canon camera—”a Canon 5 DSR,” he specified—in a Nauticam Housing with an assortment of lenses and strobes to take his photographs. He clarified that the hues and saturation allow him “to reach exactly what I need in creating my abstract art.”

Leidy’s dives in the Coral Triangle were magical and filled with adventure, as he explained, “nothing short of swimming in an aquarium.” On one of his dives, however, Leidy had a strange surprise. After shooting some subjects underwater,

From above: “Black Lagoon”; “Man With Shades”; Chris Leidy The Coral Triangle (Assouline), with an introduction written by Fabien Cousteau. Opposite page, from above: “Red Fan”; “Keith Haring Coral.”

he got to the surface, looked around, and only saw water. No boat. “I was left adrift,” he exclaims. But even with that setback, Leidy assured that the Coral Triangle has the most beautiful waters on the planet, and hopes that viewers are moved by his art, also stating that “healthy oceans and reefs mean healthy air for us all.” It’s clear that Leidy’s artistic passions live under the sea. But his next engagement will take place on land, although it will be just as thrilling. Leidy will be getting married in Bali and raising a child. “The adventure of a lifetime awaits me.” u