Taft Museum of Art

Exhibition

Black, White, and Iconic: Photographs from Local Collections in the Sinton Gallery

Oct. 17, 2014 – Jan. 11, 2015
Wed–Fri:11 am–4 pm | Sat–Sun:11 am–5 pm | Open Tues (Nov–Dec): 11 am–4 pm

Portraits were among the most popular subjects in early photography. As the medium developed, photographers began exploring the human figure in more creative ways. Near the beginning of the 19th century, the Pictorialists created photographs that resembled paintings in an effort to gain acceptance as fine artists. Later, Modernist photographers embraced the inherent qualities of photography and used the figure as a design element in their innovative compositions. Drawn from local private collections, ten works sample portrait and figure photography between 1900 and 1940. The exhibition features iconic works by beloved photographers such as Edward Steichen, Alfred Stieglitz, Berenice Abbott and Ansel Adams.