The exhibition A Democracy of Imagery features work by 84 photographers from the 1860s through 2002. Curated by Colin Westerbeck, the show presents 100 images by artists including Richard Avedon, Edward Burtynsky, Henri Cartier-Bresson, Walker Evans, Robert Frank, Saul Leiter, Vivian Maier, Man Ray, Robert Mapplethorpe, Joel Meyerowitz, and Gordon Parks.
In 2014, Colin Westerbeck had the genesis of an idea for a photography exhibition based on a challenge. Writing about Howard Greenberg in the book’s foreword, Westerbeck notes, “I approached him because I suspected I could do a museum-quality exhibition—one with the reach and variety of the slow time over which museum holdings accumulate—out of his stock-in-trade.”
A Democracy of Imagery affords a rare opportunity to investigate the gallery’s famed backrooms and uncover treasures of the medium. Howard Greenberg is widely credited as a leader in the development of the modern photography market. Founded in 1981, the Gallery is known internationally for its pioneering role in exhibiting photography from all periods.
A Democracy of Imagery includes historical images both enchanting and ominous. The book’s cover image, an anonymous photograph from the mid-1880s, shows the Statue of Liberty under construction in France, before it was disassembled and shipped to New York for installation in the harbor on Liberty Island. Another photograph from 1938 by Margaret Bourke-White depicts thousands of smiling Czechs giving the “Heil Hitler” salute in response to a speech by the Czech Nazi leader Konrad Henlein.
A number of portraits of famous artists and writers provide highlights in the exhibition. Saul Leiter’s 1950s photograph of a young Andy Warhol shows the artist reviewing images when he was known as an illustrator. Allen Ginsberg’s 1989 photograph of David Hockney and William S. Burroughs reveals two well-dressed gentlemen with their hats on a table facing away from each other. Hockney has the corner of his month upturned and Burroughs has a slight frown, as if they’re ying and yang, reciprocal spirts of bemusement and disapproval.
Alfred Hitchcock is shown hamming it up for the camera in a 1942 photograph by Gjon Mili using stroboscopic flash. According to Mili, the great director “found the idea of being directed very amusing and behaved accordingly.” Also performing for the camera are Secretary of Defense William Cohen, President Clinton, and Secretary of State Madeleine Albright with National Security Advisor Sandy Berger. The 1999 photograph by Diana Walker shows the leaders enacting “hear no evil, see no evil…” in a lighthearted moment in a holding room before a NATO conference.
EXHIBITION
A Democracy of Imagery
Curated by Colin Westerbeck
From March 24th to April 30th, 2016
Howard Greenberg Gallery
Main Gallery
41 E 57th St Suite 1406
New York, NY 10022
United States
http://www.howardgreenberg.com
BOOK
A Democracy of Imagery
Steidl/Howard Greenberg Library
136 pages, 100 images
Hardback
29.7 x 30.5 cm
English
ISBN 978-3-95829-116-4
€ 45.00
https://steidl.de
