October 17, 2003 – January 19, 2004
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Ansel Adams, FROZEN LAKE AND CLIFFS, KAWEAH GAP, SIERRA NEVADA, CALIFORNIA (detail) , 1932, Gelatin silver print Museum purchase with funds provided by the family of Ethel L. Rike and gift of the artist |
Ansel Adams occupies a unique niche in the world of art. His name is virtually
synonymous with art photography. His elegant portrayals of nature and
its beauty are among the most recognized and beloved images of the 20th
century. Images of the vast American West, clouds billowing into the stratosphere,
mountain peaks cutting jagged tears across the horizon, and brilliant
sunlit trees, rivers and escarpments starkly contrasted by the deep abyss
of blackness so carefully crafted by Adams.
This exhibition honors the legacy of Ansel Adams. Through more than 50 stunning works of art, including nearly 40 by the great master himself, visitors will examine the rich history of Ansel Adams as well as the work of his colleagues during the first half of the 20th century. Among the other photographers included are Edward Weston, Imogen Cunningham, Laura Gilpin and Paul Strand, each in their own right masters of 20th century photography.
Among the iconic images included in this exhibition honoring Ansel Adams are: Moon and Half Dome, Yosemite Valley (1960), Monolith, The Face of Half Dome, Yosemite National Park, California (1927), Moonrise, Hernandez, New Mexico (1941 ), Winter Sunrise, The Sierra Nevada From Lone Pine, California (1944), and Frozen Lake and Cliffs, Kaweah Gap, Sierra Nevada, California (1932).
Ansel Adams was California born and raised. Born to an affluent San Francisco family in 1902, Adams’s father gave him a Kodak #1 Box Brownie camera in 1916. For the next 68 years, Adams would return to Yosemite to work, live and photograph.
Ansel Adams was a master of the dramatic. His talents with a camera and lens were equaled by his genius in the darkroom. Adams’ work is etched in the American psyche. His dramatic views of the land are symbolic of the unbridled majesty of the West and the great outdoors. His timeless images are forever reverent in their adulation of nature.
Admission includes THE GLASS OF LOUIS COMFORT TIFFANY and MONET AND THE AGE OF AMERICAN IMPRESSIONISM