Bear Down 100: Capturing history at the CCP
The Center for Creative Photography opened its doors to the public in 1975, with a founding archive that included collections from Adams, Harry Callahan, Wynn Bullock, Frederick Sommer and Aaron Siskind.
As part of the 100th anniversary of our motto, "Bear Down," the University of Arizona is looking back at several of the most remarkable moments and accomplishments in the university's illustrious history, with an eye toward the "Bear Down" moments of the future.
Living the values of "Bear Down" and capturing the perfect picture often involve a lot of the same skills. Both require immense concentration and a commitment to framing any moment in the best possible way.
It takes a keen eye, and dedication, to succeed.
That may have been on the minds of then-University of Arizona President John Schaefer and renowned photographer Ansel Adams in 1974, as the duo concocted what soon became the Center for Creative Photography on the U of A campus. More than a museum and different from a classroom, the center is home to countless archives, hosts teaching programs and seminars, and displays some of the world's most interesting photographs – as well as the various tools and ephemera involved in their creation.
The CCP opened its doors to the public in 1975, with a founding archive that included collections from Adams, Harry Callahan, Wynn Bullock, Frederick Sommer and Aaron Siskind. In the modern era, the center now hosts more than 300 archival collections containing millions of objects – including negatives, prints, letters and other materials – complemented by a collection of 120,000 photographs by more than 2,200 photographers.
CCP at 50
The CCP celebrated its 50th anniversary last year, marking the occasion with "Picture Party: Celebrating the Collection at 50," which displayed in the center's Alice Chaiten Baker Interdisciplinary Gallery, including photographs by several renowned artists, including Adams, Susan Meiselas and Graciela Iturbide.
One of the center's most significant acquisitions came in 2019, when it acquired the archive of Pulitzer Prize-winning photographer David Hume Kennerly. The collection features nearly 1 million images, prints, objects and documents spanning 50 years of history, including the tenure of 10 U.S. presidents, from Lyndon B. Johnson to Donald Trump.
The center also hosted the first-ever major retrospective highlighting the career of Louis Carlos Bernal, a pioneering Chicano photographer and Tucson arts icon. The Louis Carlos Bernal Collection at the CCP includes 1,200 prints, project records and other materials from his life and career.
In addition to exhibitions and educational opportunities, the center also supports artists through its fellowship program for interdisciplinary academic, artistic and public interest projects, and is an unparalleled resource for arts research.
The modern era
Prepared for the modern era, the center launched its own smartphone-ready mobile guide, CCP Interactive, in 2020. The app offers narrated tours of galleries, selections from photographic and oral history collections, hyperlinks for recommended reading, and details about institutional membership and upcoming events.
More recently, the CCP celebrated the completion of its cold storage facility, a 45,000-square-foot space that helps preserve delicate photographs and negatives. The new facility is designed to accommodate the next 20 years of collection growth, ensuring future generations can experience the work of countless influential photographers.
Explore more Bear Down 100 moments at Arizona.edu/BearDown.
