Collection Guide
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Office of Public Information photographs: 1950-1989
PUB.001.002
PUB.001.002
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Table of contents
Title: Office of Public Information photographs
Identifier/Call Number: PUB.001.002
Contributing Institution:
Los Angeles County Museum of Art Balch Art Research Library
Language of Material:
English
Physical Description:
24.6 Linear feet
59 Hollinger boxes
Date (bulk): Bulk, 1960-1975
Date (inclusive): 1944-1989
creator:
Los Angeles County Museum of Art Photographic Services Department.
creator:
Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Public Information Office.
These photographs and records were most likely compiled by or for the Office of Public Information of the Los Angeles County
Museum of Art (LACMA) for reference and publicity use. The bulk of these photographs were created by the Los Angeles County
Museum of Art Photo Services department. The Photos Services Department fulfilled requests for photographs from museum departments
to perform original photography or provide reproductions of existing photography of museum events, staff, art objects, and
installations for the purposes of reference, to produce publications, for publicity, and other purposes. LACMA has had its
own photography department since at least 1964 when staff documented the move of the museum's art collections from Exhibition
Park to its location on Wilshire Boulevard. Photographs taken before 1964 were probably produced by photographers employed
by the Los Angeles County Museum of Science, History, and Art before the Art Division separated to become LACMA.
This collection consists of 59 Hollinger boxes totaling 24.6 linear feet, dating from 1944 to 1989 (bulk 1960 to 1975) organized
in two series. The bulk of the collection are black and white photographic prints and negatives and also includes color transparencies,
black and white contact sheets, and color and black and white slides. Also present are memos, request for photograph forms,
unattached photograph labels, exhibition brochures, newspaper clippings, and press releases.
The Exhibition photographs series is primarily comprised of object photography pertaining to museum exhibitions as well as
photography of installed artworks. Objects depicted are both from LACMA's own collection or were lent for the purpose of exhibition.
Exhibitions represented in this series took place from 1944 to 1989. Exhibitions for which installation photography is present
include
Master Works of Mexican Art (EX. 1292),
Robert Irwin- Kenneth Price (EX. 1320),
Picasso: 60 Years of Graphic Works (EX. 1325),
Man Ray (EX. 1326),
Sculpture of Black Africa: the Paul Tishman Collection (EX. 1359),
American Sculpture of the Sixties (EX. 1331),
Installation of Planes (Braniff) Decorated by Alexander Calder (EX. 1468),
Chinese Paintings from the Cahill Collection (EX. 1481) and others. Photographs of events related to the exhibitions can be found in
Reuben Nakian - Sculpture and Drawings (EX. 1272),
Philip Guston Exhibition (EX. 1288),
Six Painters and the Object (EX. 1290),
Master Works of Mexican Art (EX. 1292),
The Bitter Years: 1935-1941 (EX. 1298),
Art Treasures of Turkey (EX. 1321),
Kate Steinitz Collection (EX. 1374) and others. Exhibitions 947 through 1292 (dating from 1944 to 1964) took place at the Los Angeles County Museum
of Science, History and Art, now the Natural History Museum located at Exposition Park, while the rest of the exhibitions
were installed at the Museum's locatio on Wilshire Blvd.
The Non-exhibition Photographs series is comprinsed of photography not related to a specific, numbered exhibition. Photographs
date from between 1950 and 1989 or are undated, and depict galleries, museum buildings and facilities, staff, visitors and
events. People depicted include museum trustees, volunteers, curators, security, art preparation, library and registrarial
staff, including LACMA's first director Richard Brown. The file titled "LACMA Pre-1975 Move to New Location" depicts museum
staff and volunteers packing, transporting and unpacking museum collections when LACMA moved to its new campus on Wilshire
Boulevard in 1964.
This collection is comprised of two series. The Exhibition Photographs series is arranged by unique exhibition number. Exhibition
numbers are assigned by the museum registrar in roughly chronological order. The Non-exhibition series is arranged alphabetically
by subject as they appeared in the original folder title. Folder titles in each series were transcribed without changes but
mispellings were corrected.
The Office of Public Information photographs was arranged and described, and this finding aid created, between April 2014
and October 2015 by interns and archivist Jessica Gambling. Intern Natalie de Almeida arranged, described and rehoused the
Non-Exhibition Photographs series in April of 2014. Intern Hannah Moshier arranged, described and rehoused the bulk of the
Exhibition Photographs series from June to September 2014. Intern Karen Karyadi completed the integration and description
of separated materials into the Exhibitions Photographs series from March to June 2015. This finding aid was completed by
Jessica Gambling in September 2015.
Conditions Governing Access note
Open for use by qualified researchers and by appointment only through the Los Angeles County Museum of Art Balch Art Research
Library. Telephone 323-857-6118 or email library@lacma.org.
Contact the Balch Research Library at 323-856-6118 or library@lacma.org for information on publishing or reproducing materials
included in these records. For some photography permission will be granted by the Los Angeles County Museum of Art as the
owner of the physical materials, and does not imply permission from the copyright holder. It is the responsibility of the
researcher to obtain all necessary permissions from the copyright holder.
[Description of item], Office of Public Information photographs, Los Angeles County Museum of Art Balch Art Research Library,
PUB.001.002.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Los Angeles County Museum of Art. -- Exhibitions
Art museums--California--Los Angeles
Art museums--Exhibitions--California--Los Angeles
Museum buildings--California--Los Angeles
Photographs