ANSEL ADAMS: PHOTOGRAPHS

Press View: Tuesday 1 April, 11am – 1pm

“Ansel Adams discovered that the natural world is infinitely varied in aspect, constantly potential, evanescent; that its grand vistas and its microcosms are never twice the same; that the landscape is not only a place but an event” John Szarkowski

Modern Art Oxford presents an exhibition of more than seventy photographs, hand-printed and selected by the American photographer and environmentalist Ansel Adams (1902–1984). This will be the first presentation of this set of photographs at a public gallery in the UK.

This timely exhibition includes Adams’ photographs of the magnificent landscapes for which he is most celebrated, from the soaring monoliths of Yosemite National Park to the lakes and mountains of Alaska. Spanning a period of fifty years, from the 1920s to the 1970s, the exhibition reveals the place of Adams’ work in a tradition of American photographers of the sublime natural landscape.

Suzanne Cotter, Acting Director and Senior Curator, said, “Ansel Adams is one of the most celebrated and influential 20th century landscape photographers. Exquisite in their formal and tonal beauty, Adams' awe-inspiring images express the grandeur of untouched nature.”

Ansel Adams: Photographs is organised by Modern Art Oxford. All works are from the collection of Anne Adams Helms. The exhibition tours to the New Art Gallery, Walsall (27 June - 31 August 2008) and Kunstmuseum, Bergen (11 September - 1 December 2008).

Ansel Adams: PHOTOGRAPHS
Kuratorin: Suzanne Cotter