Acquisition Proposal Form
Proposed By: Adrienne Watson
Museum: The Art Institute of Chicago
Location: Chicago, IL
Museum Type: Art
Brief Description of Museum Collection:
The Art Institute of Chicago has an encyclopedic collection which includes African, American, Ancient, Architecture and Design, Arms and Armor, Medieval, Renaissance, Asian, Contemporary, European Decorative Arts, European Painting and Sculpture, Indian Art of the Americas, Modern, Photography, Prints and Drawings, Textiles, and a set of Miniature Rooms.
Proposed Acquisition: Chicago (Rose’s Confectionary), 1955 by Harry Callahan (1912-1999)
Date of Object(s): c. 1995, Signed in pencil in the margin, (Number 1 from an edition of 12)
Medium: Dye-bleach color print
Size: 4x6 inches
Source: Christie’s, Rockefeller Plaza, New York
Price: $4,000-$6,000
Justification:
My initial justification for the acquisition of this work relates to its support of the mission statement of the Art Institute of Chicago, and its alignment with the various collections themes of the museum.
The Art Institute of Chicago has a multi-faceted mission, which includes an emphasis on the desire to “form, conserve, research, publish, and exhibit a permanent collection of objects of art of all kinds.” As mentioned above, the collections include a wealth of cultures and span many centuries. They also explore a variety of themes, one of which is “Artists in Chicago” and aims to provide the public with a selection of artists who have lived and/or worked in the city while establishing their careers, and building on its “rich cultural legacy.” Among the themes represented in the Art Institute’s Photography collection is the Cityscape, or urban landscape photography. With these themes in mind, the artist, date, and location of this print, as well as its genre, speak to its relevance within the photography collection of the Art Institute of Chicago.
Harry Callahan is an important contributor to the artistic history of Chicago. In 1946, he was hired to teach photography at the Chicago Institute of Design by fellow artist László Moholy-Nagy. At the time, the ID, originally established as the New Bauhaus, was at the forefront of innovative methods of education and teaching photography in America during the 20th century. Between 1946 and 1961 his work was included in numerous shows at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, but this photograph, which pictures the façade of a confectionary (or snack shop) in Chicago, was created in 1955, during his appointment at the Institute of Design. Rose’s Confectionary is thus a work by a Chicago artist, and pictures the Chicago cityscape, two characteristics which make it relevant to the Art Institute Collection.
In addition, the Art Institute of Chicago already has a well-established collection of Harry Callahan photographs, including 116 images. Although Harry Callahan’s work is owned by museums throughout the United States, it is to be noted that those institutions which contain the largest amount of his work have less. For instance, the Museum of Contemporary Photography in Chicago owns 25 Harry Callahan photographs, the Museum of Modern Art in New York owns approximately 100, the National Gallery of Art has 107, and the George Eastman House in New York owns 91 (25 of which are Chicago cityscapes), which means that the Art Institute is the leading collector of Harry Callahan photography. Of the Harry Callahan works owned by the Art Institute of Chicago, 72 images were taken in Chicago, less than 10 works qualify as cityscapes, and only one image is a color print. This is an area of the collection worth developing.
The last time the Art Institute held an exhibition of Harry Callahan was in 2006, entitled Harry Callahan: The Photographer at Work. By purchasing Rose’s Confectionary, and other similar works, the Art Institute has the potential to not only expand it’s collection of cityscapes, specifically those which feature Chicago, but also to enrich its selection of Harry Callahan photography by incorporating color prints, which would enhance future exhibitions, as well as potential research, on this photographer.
Other reasons that this particular image would be an asset to the Art Institute’s collection are related to the quality of the image, and its longevity, which directly relate to the medium in which it was created, the dye-bleach print. To illustrate this, let me explain the process used to create the image. Dye bleach color prints are made up of three layers of gelatin on paper. Each layer contains light-sensitive silver halides and a colored dye. When the paper is exposed to light shown through a color negative, three positive images of dye and silver are produced, one on top of the other. Then the silver is bleached out, leaving only the color images. A common name for this type of color print is a Cibachrome. These prints typically contain more contrast than those produced by other methods of color printing, making them more dramatic. They are also chemically stable, and are appreciated for their durability. The quality of the image places it in a positive light in regards to future collections care and ensures that the Art Institute would be collecting a work of excellence.
Finally, what would make this photograph unique, if purchased by the Art Institute of Chicago, would be its standing as the only print of the original image available for public viewing. At this time, although other prints of this image may exist in private collections (since it has been established that this print is one of twelve created in 1995, and the location of any other prints made from the original negative have been unreported), there are none known to be preserved in a museum collection. This means that by exhibiting this particular work, a visitor to the Art Institute would be seeing a never-before exhibited work by Harry Callahan, which is really exciting.
I have two suggestions regarding organizations which may be willing to contribute funds to help cover the cost of this work.
Photography Associates, an affiliate group of the Art Institute, was founded in 1989 “to create an intimate forum devoted to the art and appreciation of photography and to support the Art Institutes collections.” They meet three times a year to hear presentations by artists, curators, and collectors, and funds raised by the group through social events and donations go directly to new acquisitions of photography for the collection. If the acquisitions committee feels that this work would be valuable to the collection, I would be willing to present the work to Photography Associates and request funding assistance.
Because this photograph was created after World War II, it qualifies as Contemporary Art, which means that another affiliate group of the Art Institute, The Society of Contemporary Art, may be able to offer financial assistance for this acquisition. This organization was founded in 1940 and has “played a prominent role in bringing contemporary art to the museum for more than half a century.” Their most prominent aim is to “enhance the Art Institute’s collection of contemporary art”. “Every year, members review a selected group of contemporary works, and, through a voting process, choose one or more of the objects to purchase on behalf of the museum.” Perhaps it could be suggested, if the committee is interested in acquiring this work, that the Society for Contemporary Art, consider it for possible funding.
Provenance:
The Christie’s auction listing describes the provenance by stating that it was purchased through Christie’s New York on January 17, 2001 in Lot 216. The name of the sale is “The American Landscape: Collection of Bruce and Nancy Berman”, which suggests that the owners originally purchased this photograph at the previously mentioned Christie’s sale. However, no previous provenance is available for the photograph. If deemed necessary, further investigation on the photograph’s provenance could be pursued.
Legal and/or ethical issues: None
Exhibition History: None/Unknown
Image:
Bibliographic Citations/Supplementary Materials:
The Art Institute of Chicago. Cityscape. Retrieved from
http://www.artic.edu/aic/collections/search/citi/category%3A50
The Art Institute of Chicago. The Collection. Retrieved from
http://ww.artic.edu/aic/collections/
The Art Institute of Chicago. Explore Themes. Retrieved from http://www.artic.edu/aic/collections/citi/themes
The Art Institute of Chicago. Harry Callahan: The Photographer at Work. Retrieved from
http://www.artic.edu/exhibitions/exhibition/callahan
The Art Institute of Chicago. Mission Statement. Retrieved from
http://www.artic.edu/aic/aboutus/mission.html.
The Art Institute of Chicago. Photography. Retrieved from
http://ww.artic.edu/aic/collections/photo
The Art Institute of Chicago. Photography Associates. Retrieved from
http://www.artic.edu/aic/members_donors/art_interest/photo/photography_associat.html
The Art Institute of Chicago. Society for Contemporary Art. Retrieved from
http://www.artic.edu/aic/members_donors/art_interest/contemp_society/contemporary_so ciety.html
The George Eastman House. Harry Callahan. Retrieved from http://www.geh.org/ne/str085/htmlsrc9/callahan_sld00001.html
Greenough, Sarah. 1996. Harry Callahan. Washington, D.C.: National Gallery of Art.
The Minneapolis Institute of Arts. Get the Picture: Glossary. Retrieved from
http://ww.artsmia.org/get-the-picture/glossary/content01.html
Museum of Contemporary Photography. Harry Callahan. Retrieved from
http://www.mocp.org/collections/permanent/callahan_harry.php
The National Gallery of Art. Harry Callahan. Retrieved from
http://www.nga.gov/cgi-bin/tsearch?oldartistid=244830
Wikipedia. Harry Callahan (photographer). Retrieved from
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harry_Callahan_(photographer)
Additional Reading:
Harry Callahan produced several monographs of his work, including Harry Callahan (1996), Water’s Edge (1980), Harry Callahan: Color (1980), Callahan (1976), Photographs: Harry Callahan (1965), The Multiple Image (1961), and On My Eyes (1960).