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A tribute to Richard Avedon's portraits at the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History
visura blog
Jul 16, 2024
Summary
The Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History will open a second complete rotation of 20 extraordinary Richard Avedon portraits spanning two decades and curated from the museum’s extensive photo history collection. The new iteration of the “(re)Framing Conversations: Photographs by Richard Avedon, 1946–1965” exhibition will launch Wednesday, Nov. 22, and is scheduled to run through 2024.
“(re) Framing Conversations: Photographs by Richard Avedon, 1946–1965”
The second Rotation of 20 Images Opens Wednesday, Nov. 22, at the National Museum of American HistoryThe Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History will open a second complete rotation of 20 extraordinary Richard Avedon portraits spanning two decades and curated from the museum’s extensive photo history collection. The new iteration of the “(re)Framing Conversations: Photographs by Richard Avedon, 1946–1965” exhibition will launch Wednesday, Nov. 22, and is scheduled to run through 2024.
In November 1962, the National Museum of American History hosted Avedon’s first one-man exhibition that included a range of photographic materials, including photographs, proof prints, contact sheets, a printing plate, and more. Avedon gifted the whole of that show to the museum, followed shortly by two additional donations of his work, including photographs and negatives. From those gifts, “(re)Framing Conversations: Photographs by Richard Avedon 1946–1965” are drawn.
Presented in conjunction with Avedon’s Centennial year, the exhibit offers beauty and stark realism from a time when photographic film dominated. Internationally recognized as one of the 20th century’s most influential photographers, Avedon's photography captured depth and dimension, embracing his subjects' emotions, psychology, and aging. Though high fashion brought him his initial fame, his passion for social and political issues became evident as his popularity rose.
The exhibition’s politics, personal decision-making, and identity themes are explored in six sections with questions around music, marriage, women and politics, who decides what’s sexy, can we change our minds, and who do you stand with? The exhibit includes a living room with a rotation of magazines from the 1940s through the 1960s for visitors to peruse and interactive tabletops about portraiture, encouraging visitors to sit, pause, reflect, and engage. Visitors can use their phone to access visual descriptions with QR codes located throughout the exhibition.“As a history museum holding a vast and exceptional collection of photography, we are pleased to reveal how fine art provides a key lens to understand and explore the nation’s complicated history,” said Anthea M. Hartig, the museum’s Elizabeth MacMillan Director. “The visual impact of Avedon’s photographs capture some of the cultural and social tensions of the era through the mass media platform of magazines, which he used masterfully as one of the nation’s culturemakers.”
“Photographs embody social, cultural, and political messages that we quickly absorb, whether we know it or not,” said Shannon Perich, the photographic history collection curator. “Revisiting these historical photographs, we can contemplate people of the past whose actions continue to resonate today and point to our contemporary ability to continue to impact American culture by what music we listen to, how we engage with issues that matter to us, and who we vote for. Avedon’s portraits humanize people elevated through history, reminding us that we are all people with power. We have to decide how we are going to employ it.
”The last opportunity to see the initial rotation of 20 portraits featured in “(re) Framing Conversations,” which includes portraits of Charlie Chaplin, Malcolm X, Judy Garland, and others, will be Nov. 5.“(re)Framing Conversations” is made possible by support from Judy and Leonard Lauder, with additional funding from Marcia and Frank Carlucci and the William Talbott Hillman Foundation.
About the National Museum of American HistoryThrough incomparable collections, rigorous research, and dynamic public outreach, the National Museum of American History seeks to empower people to create a more just and compassionate future by examining, preserving, and sharing the complexity of our past. The museum, located on Constitution Avenue N.W., between 12th and 14th streets, is open daily except Dec. 25, between 10 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. Admission is free. The museum doors are always open online, and the public can follow the museum on social media, such as Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. The public may call (202) 633-1000 for Smithsonian information.
“(re) Framing Conversations: Photographs by Richard Avedon, 1946–1965”Americanhistory.si.edu
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