Happy Birthday, Ansel Adams, From Your UA Friends

Feb. 10, 2017
Ansel Adams, born in 1902, had a career that spanned seven decades. Some of the most famous works by Adams were taken in the Western region of the United States, often in wilderness areas such as northern California's Yosemite Valley.
A 4- by 5-inch Graflex camera in the Ansel Adams Archive. Adams used the Graflex Century Universal View camera for many of his photographs.
A 7- by 17-inch banquet camera in the Ansel Adams Archive
"Moonrise, Hernandez, New Mexico" by Adams, taken in 1941. The photo is one of Adams' most popular images.
"Monolith, the Face of Half Dome, Yosemite National Park" was taken around 1927, becoming one of the most iconic images ever taken by Adams.
Adams took "Mission San Xavier del Bac, Tucson, Arizona" in 1950.
"Grand Canyon from the South Rim, Arizona" was taken by Adams in about 1942. Adams was invited the previous year by Secretary of the Interior Harold Ickes to capture large-scale mural prints.
"Saguaro National Monument," taken by Adams in 1942
A portrait of Adams by former UA President John P. Schaefer, who worked with Adams to plan what would become the UA's Center for Creative Photography.

The late Ansel Adams, co-founder of the University of Arizona Center for Creative Photography, was one of the most visible and widely praised American photographers of the 20th century, revered for his striking images and advocacy for the preservation of the nation's wilderness areas.

To celebrate what would have been Adams' 115th birthday on Feb. 20, the UA center is hosting a print viewing and lecture with Becky Senf, chief curator. Senf will present a look at Adams' life through her favorite pieces in the center's archives.

The Feb. 18 event, underwritten by the Western Photographic Historical Society, will be held from 1 to 4 p.m. at the Center for Creative Photography, 1031 N. Olive Road. Senf's talk will be at 2.

Also, Leslie Squyres, head of the Volkerding Study Center, will offer small-group tours of the Ansel Adams flat file drawers in the "From the Vault" exhibition. Tour space is limited, and day-of registration is required for the tours.

The center also is inviting members of the public to share their own photographic images influenced by the work of Adams by using the handle #inspiredbyansel on Instagram.

The Ansel Adams Archive at the Center for Creative Photography holds more than 2,500 items, which include fine prints, negatives, correspondence publications and photographic equipment.

Photos courtesy of the UA Center of Creative Photography and the Ansel Adams Publishing Rights Trust, which holds copyright to all works by Adams. Any reprint of Adams' images requires the expressed written permission of the Ansel Adams Publishing Rights Trust. To inquire, contact Gina Compitello-Moore, marketing manager for the UA Museum of Art and the Center for Creative Photography, at 520-626-7978 or ginacompitello@email.arizona.edu. 

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