MoMA Acquires Two Sets of Important Photographs
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| Nadar (Gaspard-Félix Tournachon) (French, 1820-1910) and Adrien Tournachon (French, 1825-1903). Pierrot Surprised (1854). Albumen silver print. 28.6 x 20.8 cm (11 1/4 x 8 3/16 in.). The Museum of Modern Art, New York. Suzanne Winsberg Collection. Gift of Suzanne Winsberg. |
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Richard Avedon (American, 1923-2004). Marilyn Monroe, actress, New York. May 6, 1957. Gelatin silver print. 20.2 x 19.8 cm (7 15/16 x 7 13/16 in.). The Museum of Modern Art, New York. Carl Jacobs Fund. © 2009 The Richard Avedon Foundation. |
By STAN PARCHIN
August 7, 2009
The Museum of Modern Art announced today its acquisition of some 60 important 19th-century photographs from the Suzanne Winsberg Collection and 39 images by Richard Avedon.
Suzanne Winsberg Collection
A bequest from the Suzanne Winsberg Collection includes rare photographs that date from 1847 to 1893. A passionate collector who died in 2008, Winsberg began to acquire exceptional examples of early French and British photography in 1970s Paris, where she studied at Pierre Boulez’s Institut de Recherche et Coordination Artistique/Musique (IRCAM). Among the artists represented in the New Yorker's holdings are Édouard-Denis Baldus, Gustave Le Gray, Nadar, Charles Nègre, Louis-Rémy Robert and Benjamin Brecknell Turner. Five salted paper prints by Nadar and views of the Forest of Fontainebleau by Le Gray are highlights of the collection.
Richard Avedon Photographs
Encompassing the artist's entire career, 39 photographs (1953-2002) by Richard Avedon came to MoMA through purchase and gift from his foundation. More than doubling the museum's collection of the American photographer's work, the recently acquired group of portraits includes those of Marilyn Monroe, Lew Alcindor (Kareem Abdul-Jabbar), Marcel Duchamp, Gabrielle "Coco" Chanel, Malcolm X, Bob Dylan, The Chicago Seven and fashion models Veruschka and Twiggy. Nine additional images from 1969 to 1973 depict Jacob Israel Avedon, the photographer's father, in declining health.
Exhibition
Selections from both acquisitions are on view in MoMA's third-floor Edward Steichen Photography Galleries from August 7, 2009 to March 22, 2010. Other images from the museum describe the medium's development from the 1880s through the 1970s and provide historical context for the new works on display.