George Eastman House presents largest Ansel Adams exhibition in its history; opens May 12

The museum's blockbuster traveling exhibition has set attendance records worldwide and is coming home to Rochester this summer

ROCHESTER, N.Y. — George Eastman House International Museum of Photography and Film will present the largest Ansel Adams exhibition in its six-decade history, featuring many photographs Adams gave personally to the museum. Inspired by the 100th anniversary of the birth of Ansel Adams (1902-1984), George Eastman House revisited its extensive collection of Adams's work and created an exhibition of 150 photographs that reflects his full career. Ansel Adams: Celebration of Genius opened in Spain and has been touring the United States, breaking attendance records at each venue. Prior to its final destination in 2008 in Scotland, the exhibition is coming home to George Eastman House this spring and summer, May 12 through Sept. 3.

Adams is among the few photographers in history whose name and work enjoy worldwide recognition. His stunning landscapes and intimate still lifes of nature continue to captivate viewers. While many come to know his work through widely published books, postcards, posters, and calendars, relatively few have actually seen his lushly printed original images.

Only George Eastman House could create an Adams exhibition of this caliber, showcasing photographs donated to the museum by Adams or purchased directly by the Eastman House curator, who wished to support Adams and his work. In addition to Adams's iconic black-and-white photographs, two of Adams's cameras will be on view, given personally to Eastman House — his first camera, a Kodak Brownie, as well as his Kodak Vest-Pocket Autographic Special. A close friend of Eastman House, Adams was in attendance at the grand opening of the museum in 1949 and served as an honorary trustee. The Eastman House exhibition will include additional images of Adams's time in Rochester.

Ansel Adams: Celebration of Genius presents work from the 1920s through the 1960s. Featured will be many of Adams's most famous images of the American West — Moonrise, Hernandez, New Mexico, 1941, Mount Williamson from Manzanar, California, ca. 1944, and Monolith, the Face of Half Dome, 1927. But prepare to discover equally stupendous (if lesser-known) images such as Mud Hills, Arizona or Water and Foam, or the wonderful abstract titled simply, Stained Wallpaper Near Alturas, Calif.

"Adams aspired to convey the power and grandeur of nature in his black-and-white photographs," said Jeanne Verhulst, associate curator of exhibitions at George Eastman House and curator of Ansel Adams: Celebration of Genius. "He often spent days in the darkroom perfecting his prints. Adams was a master. This exhibition honors the man and celebrates his genius."

Many may be surprised to see that Adams did not confine himself to landscapes, but also made portraits and other subjects as humble as fence posts into images nearly as monumental as his beloved mountain ranges. Also featured will be an early 1927 portfolio of Parmelian prints (gelatin silver emulsion on parchment paper). George Eastman House is pleased to include this portfolio from its collection for the first time.

Ansel Adams: Celebration of Genius is sponsored by Nixon Peabody LLP, Excellus, and Time Warner Cable. A family guide to the exhibition will be available in the gallery and can be downloaded at www.eastmanhouse.org during the run of the exhibition.

About Ansel Adams
On a summer day in 1916, at the age of 14, Ansel Adams saw the breathtaking Yosemite Valley for the first time. With a Kodak No. 1 Brownie box camera, he proceeded to make pictures. Perhaps he had an inkling then that this magical place would be forever entwined in his destiny.

Adams was a gifted musician with ambitions to be a concert pianist from age 12. He struggled with which career to follow: music or photography. In 1930, he acceded to the lure of a life outdoors in pursuit of photography and gave up serious study of the piano. However, he credited music for teaching him the discipline, patience, and perseverance he needed in photography.

Adams realized he could not earn a living from art photography alone. From 1930 until the early 1970s like many of his contemporaries — including Edward Weston and Paul Strand — Adams accepted commercial assignments to support his family, which included his wife and two children Michael (born 1933) and Anne (born 1935). His commercial work ranged from mundane department store catalogues, car advertisements, and marketing booklets to giant Coloramas for Eastman Kodak Company (which hung in Grand Central Station), murals for the Department of Interior, LIFE and FORTUNE magazines, and testing film for his friend, Dr. Edwin Land of the Polaroid Corporation. Adams worked in color and in black-and-white, but he never considered his commercial work part of his art.

Exhibition Admission
A special ticket price will be charged for the Ansel Adams exhibition. Admission is $12 adults; $10 seniors (age 60+); $8 students; $3 children ages 5 to 12; and free for children 4 and under. Members are admitted free. Admission to the Ansel Adams exhibition includes admission to the historic house and gardens and other featured exhibitions.

Exhibition Hours
10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday;
10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Thursday;
1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday
The exhibition also will be on view 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays in May, including Memorial Day (May 28), as well as Labor Day (Sept. 3, the closing day).

Exhibition Programs
Film Series
"Auteur Showdown: Great American Westerns by Great Directors" will be screened throughout May and June. These Westerns showcase the sometimes-staggering American landscapes in the tradition of Ansel Adams. Titles include High Noon, Western Union, Man of the West, and Red River.

For film descriptions visit http://dryden.eastmanhouse.org or call the Film Info Line at (585) 271-4090. Admission to each film is $6 adults; $5 students; $4 members.

The Zone System
Photography Lecture
Thursday, June 14, 6:30 p.m.
Willie Osterman, professor of photography with Rochester Institute of Technology, will present "The Zone System," as taught to him by Ansel Adams. After years of practice, Osterman has simplified the often-confusing zone system. He will demonstrate how you can apply the zone system and in turn amaze your visual sensibilities and impress your friends. Curtis Theatre.

Included with regular museum admission ($8 adults; $6 senior citizens (60+); $5 students; $3 children (5-12); and free for children 4 and under and museum members).

"Picture This!"
Kids Workshop in Photography and Writing
June 25 to 29
Writers & Books and George Eastman House present "Picture This! Workshops in Word and Photographic Art" using the house, gardens, galleries, museum collections and the Ansel Adams exhibition as inspiration for creative writing. Sessions are led by instructors from Writers & Books and Eastman House staff. Children ages 8-13 will meet for full-day sessions. For registration information, call Writers & Books at (585) 473-2590 ext. 109

Ansel Adams Community Day
Sunday, Aug. 12, 1 to 4 p.m.
The exhibition will feature environmental organizations and family activities, followed by a lecture with Michael Adams, Ansel AdamsÕs son.

All Community Day events are included with regular museum admission ($8 adults; $6 senior citizens (60+); $5 students; $3 children (5-12); and free for children 4 and under and museum members). Please note, there is an additional admission charge for the Ansel Adams exhibition.

Lecture with Michael Adams
Sunday, Aug. 12, 4 p.m.
Ansel Adams's son, Michael Adams, will present the lecture "Ansel Adams: A Son's Perspective." Michael Adams traveled extensively with his father and was with him when he photographed many of his most famous images, including Moonrise, Hernandez, N.M. and Mt. McKinley, Wonder Lake, Alaska. He will share his family's early history and discuss his father's first trip to Yosemite, photographic beginnings, and the High Sierra.

Dryden Theatre. Admission is $15 general admission and $10 members and students. Tickets go on sale May 12.

Related Exhibitions

Pictures for Ansel: Photography and Environmental Thought
May 12 through Sept. 3, 2007
Ansel Adams is recognized today not only for his aesthetic genius, but for his prescient awareness of the need to conserve our natural resources. Over time, many photographers have helped us reach this understanding, and today the camera remains a potent weapon in this struggle. This selection of images from the George Eastman House collection affirms Ansel Adams's values and pays tribute to his immeasurable contribution to environmental thought.

Vital Signs: Place
May 12 through Sept. 3, 2007
Designed as a counterpart to Ansel Adams: Celebration of Genius, this exhibition considers depictions of place, particularly urban landscape, that demonstrate the vitality of the landscape genre as it is understood today. Part of a biennial series of contemporary photography featuring the work of emerging artist from around the world, Vital Signs includes both digital and film-based work, color and black-and-white, as well as a video installation.

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