Arbus Public Programs/page 1

October 10, 2003

Contact:

Libby Garrison, 415.357.4177,

Robyn Wise, 415.357.4172,

Sandra Farish Sloan, 415.357.4174,

SFMOMA PRESENTS SERIES OF PUBLIC PROGRAMS TO ACCOMPANY DIANE ARBUS REVELATIONSEXHIBITION

In conjunction with the Diane Arbus Revelationsexhibition,on view from October 25, 2003, to February 8, 2004,the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA) will present the following public programs.

Opening Day Lecture and Conversation

Diane Arbus: Behind the Image

Saturday, October 25 •1–3 p.m. • Phyllis Wattis Theater

Sandra S. Phillips, SFMOMA senior curator of photography, and Elisabeth Sussman,exhibition cocurator

Tickets: $12 general; $8 SFMOMA members, students with ID and seniors; available at SFMOMA or through

Join the exhibition curators for an afternoon of conversation on the work of Diane Arbus. Phillips reflects on the relationship of artist and subject in Arbus’s oeuvre, while Sussman discusses the photographer’s personal influences and the evolution of her distinctive vision. A dialogue with the audience follows.

Docent-Led Gallery Tours

Highlights fromDiane Arbus Revelations

Beginning November 1 •Daily (except Wednesdays)1:30 p.m.

Free with Museum admission.

Private tours for groups of ten or more are available. Call 415.357.4197 for information and scheduling.

Video Screenings

Going Where I’ve Never Been: Photography of Diane Arbus

Beginning November 6 •Thursdays 7 p.m., Fridays and Saturdays 1 p.m. and 3 p.m.• KoretVisitorEducationCenter

Free with Museum admission.

Teacher Program

Looking Beyond: Diane Arbus

Saturday, November 8 • 9:30 a.m.–12:30 p.m.• KoretVisitorEducationCenter

Registration: $25 general;$20SFMOMA members.Call 415.357.4097 for information.

Teachers will examine how the photographs of Diane Arbus can offer a window into life’s thorny, compelling, touching moments, illuminating the diverse ways people see each other and the world. Registration includes an educational kit containing slides and written materials.

Art Sandwiched In

Diane Arbus Revelations: A Discussion of the Work of Photographer Diane Arbus

Thursday, November 13 • Noon • The Schwab Room

Carla Emil and Rich Silverstein, collectors; Sandra Phillips, SFMOMA senior curator of photography;Larry Sultan, photographer and professor

Tickets: $60 general; $55 SFMOMA members, includes lunch.Call 415.357.4127 for tickets.

Diane Arbus found most of her subjects in NewYork City and its environs during the 1950s and 1960s. Her portraits of couples, children, carnival performers, people on the street, eccentrics and celebrities explore the relationship between appearance and identity, illusion and belief, theater and reality. This panel takes an in-depth look at Arbus’s photography from the perspective of a fellow photographer and two collectors, addressingwhat makes Arbus’s workso compelling to contemporary viewers.

Panel Discussion

Intentionality, Ambiguity, and Truth: A Conversation about Reagan Louie, Diane Arbus, and the Elusive Nature of Photographic Meaning

Saturday, November 22 • 2–4 p.m. • Phyllis Wattis Theater

Panel: Susan Meiselas, photographer; Tracy Quan, writer and sex worker; Sandra S. Phillips, SFMOMA senior curator of photography; Sally Stein, associate professor of art history, University of California, Irvine

This diverse panel discusses the elusive nature of photographic meaning and addresses the relationship of photographers to their subjects and audiences. When photographers confront controversial issues, what, beyond making images, should they be doing and why? How and to what extent can photographs convey their makers’ intentions or attitudes? Is photographic ambiguity a problem or an opportunity? A book signing with Meiselas immediately follows in the Haas Atrium.

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Admission prices: Adults $10; seniors $7; students with ID $6. SFMOMA members and children 12 and under are admitted free. Thursday evenings, 6 to 9 p.m., admission is half price. The first Tuesday of each month admission is free.

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The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art is a private, not-for-profit institution supported by its members, individual contributors to Donor Circle, corporate and foundation support, federal and state government grants and admission revenues. Annual programming is sustained through the generosity of Grants for the Arts/San Francisco Hotel Tax Fund and The James Irvine Foundation. Thursday evening half-priced admission is sponsored by Banana Republic. Online sponsor: BayArea.Citysearch.com. Reduced admission for seniors is sponsored by Pacific Bell. KidstART free admission for children twelve and under is made possible by The Charles Schwab Corporation Foundation.

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