Finding aid for the Frances Terpak photographs of Romanesque architecture and sculpture in southern France and northern Spain,
1977-1989, undated
Finding aid prepared by Ann Harrison
Descriptive Summary
Title: Frances Terpak photographs of Romanesque architecture and sculpture in southern France and northern Spain
Date (inclusive): 1977-1989, undated
Number: 2010.P.1
Creator/Collector:
Terpak, Frances, 1948-
Physical Description:
7.9 linear feet
(18 boxes)
Repository:
The Getty Research Institute
Special Collections
1200 Getty Center Drive, Suite 1100
Los Angeles, California, 90049-1688
(310) 440-7390
Abstract: Photographs and related research material documenting Romanesque sculpture and architecture in southern France and northern
Spain comprise this collection. Frances Terpak photographed the majority of the images and compiled the other materials in
the course of research for her dissertation, "The Romanesque Architecture and Sculpture of Saint Caprais in Agen" (Yale University,
1982), and for subsequent scholarly articles. Over 150 rolls of 35mm negatives shot by Terpak and over 2000 images printed
from these negatives form the bulk of the collection. Also included are a small number of photographs acquired from institutional
and commercial sources, including Bildarchiv Foto Marburg, Guntram Koch, Photo Zodiaque and Archivo Moreno. Related research
materials, such as notes, keyed architectural plans, and shot lists, complement the photographs.
Request Materials: Request access to the physical materials described in this inventory through the
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Language: Collection material is in
English.
Biographical/Historical Note
Frances Terpak studied art history at the Pennsylvania State University (BA 1970, MA 1972). A student of Jan van der Meulen,
she wrote her master's thesis on the iconography of the Incarnation portal on the west facade of Chartres Cathedral. Terpak
continued her study of medieval art at Yale University, completing her dissertation, "The Romanesque Architecture and Sculpture
of Saint Caprais in Agen," in 1982. During this period of her studies, Terpak also proved to be an extremely skilled photographer.
Following in the scholar-photographer role of her mentor Meulen, Terpak understood precisely what an art historian needed
to see in a documentary study photograph - the framing, shot angle, focus, depth of field and lighting - and unlike most art
historians, she had the photographic skill to actually capture that image.
After completing her degree, Terpak pursued this intersection of photography and the study of art history. In 1983, she joined
the staff of the Getty Center for the History of Art and the Humanities (now the Getty Research Institute), which was building
one of the largest photographic archives for research in the fine arts in the United States. Terpak was brought in to oversee
the expansion of its holdings into medieval art and architecture, and under her guidance this section grew to over a quarter
million photographic prints. At the same time, she continued to publish and lecture on French Romanesque sculpture. Terpak
is currently curator of photographs at the Getty Research Institute.
Administrative Information
Access
Open for use by qualified researchers.
Publication Rights
Preferred Citation
Frances Terpak photographs of Romanesque architecture and sculpture in southern France and northern Spain, 1977-1989, undated,
The Getty Research Institute, Los Angeles, Accession no. 2010.P.1
hdl.handle.net/10020/cifa2010p1
Acquisition Information
Gift of Frances Terpak. Acquired in 2010.
Processing History
The collection was rehoused by the Registrar's office upon receipt. In 2015 Ann Harrison further processed the collection
and created the finding aid.
Scope and Content of Collection
Photographs and related research material documenting Romanesque sculpture and architecture in southern France and northern
Spain comprise this collection. Frances Terpak photographed the majority of the images and compiled the other materials in
the course of research for her dissertation, "The Romanesque Architecture and Sculpture of Saint Caprais in Agen" (Yale University,
1982), and for subsequent scholarly articles. Over 150 rolls of 35mm negatives shot by Terpak and over 2000 images printed
from these negatives form the bulk of the collection. Also included are a small number of photographs acquired from institutional
and commercial sources, including Bildarchiv Foto Marburg, Guntram Koch, Photo Zodiaque and Archivo Moreno. Related research
materials, such as notes, keyed architectural plans, and shot lists, complement the photographs.
The importance of this collection lies in the choice of sites documented. While some major monuments such as the cloister
at Moissac are represented, the majority of the images depict Romanesque sites that are not well-known or published. Even
for famous sites, however, this collection includes aspects of monuments that are not otherwise well-published, such as all
the sculptural surfaces of the altar table at Saint Sernin, Toulouse. Many of the images are also keyed to plans of the structure
locating the capital or other sculptural detail.
The bulk of the photographic prints in the collection are black-and-white in a 5 x 7 inch format and were printed from negatives
made by Terpak. These prints, however, represent only a portion of Terpak's photographic documentation. French sites represented
in the negatives, but not in the prints include: Angoulême, Arces-sur-Gironde, Beurlay, Blasimon, Bouglon-Vieux, Bouloc, Cahors,
Cambes, Cessac, Colombiers, Doulezon, Espalion, Frespech, Gourvillette, Goutz, Guîtres, Hautefage, Lacour, Lavaur, Lavergne,
Le Dorat, Limoges, Listrac, Macqueville, Marcilhac, Marcoux, Monsempron-Libos, Montbron, Moulidars, Mourens, Oradour-Fanais,
Pérignac, Pujols, Romestaing, Saint-André-de-Cubzac, Saint-Benoît-sur Loire, Saint-Émilion, Saint-Jean-de Côle, Saint-Lizier,
Saint-Martin-Curton, Saint-Martin-de-Beauville, Sainte-Colombe-en-Bruilhois, Sainte-Radegonde, Salabes, Sauveterre, Tarbes,
and Villemartin. For Spain, negatives for the following sites are not printed: Frómista, Pineda de la Sierra, Rebolledo de
la Torre, Santillana del Mar, Santa Cruz de la Séros, Silos, Colombres, the Archaeological Museum in Madrid and the Ctatlan
Museum in Barcelona.
Terpak photographed the majority of the sites in France in 1977 and 1978. The photographs of sites in Spain were taken in
1988, with the exception of the site of Loarre, which was shot in 1977.
Arrangement
Arranged by type of material.
Indexing Terms
Subjects - Topics
Architecture, Medieval
Architecture, Romanesque--France
Architecture, Romanesque--Spain
Sculpture, Medieval
Sculpture, Romanesque--France
Sculpture, Romanesque--Spain
Genres and Forms of Material
Gelatin silver prints--20th century
Negatives (photographic)--20th century
Photographic documentation of Romanesque architecture and sculpture,
1977-1989, undated
Cathédrale de Saint-Caprais
Box 1-4
Standard black-and-white photographs
Box 14, Folder 2
Oversize black-and-white photograph
Box 6, Folder 1
Église Sainte-Foy and Église Notre-Dame du Bourg
Box 6, Folder 2-3
Aix-en-Provence, Cathédrale Saint-Sauveur
Box 7, Folder 6
Musée d'Arles antique
Scope and Content Note
Photographs by Guntram Koch; includes correspondence.
Box 6, Folder 4
Arnac Pompadour, Église Saint-Pierre et Saint-Pardoux
Box 11, Folder 2
Aulnay, Église Saint-Pierre
Box 11, Folder 3
Bourg-Argental, Église Saint-André
Box 7, Folder 7
Castelculier, Église Notre-Dame de Cabalsaut
Box 11, Folder 2
Castelviel, Église Notre-Dame
Box 14, Folder 3
Charroux, Abbaye Saint-Sauveur
Box 7, Folder 8
Chartres, Cathédrale de Notre-Dame de Chartres
Box 7, Folder 9
Conques, Abbatiale Sainte-Foy
Box 7, Folder 10
Layrac, Église Saint-Martin
Box 11, Folder 3
Melle, Église Saint-Hilaire
Box 8, Folder 1
Moissac, Abbaye Saint-Pierre
Box 8, Folder 2
Montmajour, Abbaye Saint-Pierre
Box 8, Folder 5
Saint-Rémy, Monastère Saint-Paul de Mausole
Box 8, Folder 6-7
Saintes, Basilique Saint-Eutrope
Box 8, Folder 8
Souillac, Abbatiale Sainte-Marie
Box 9, Folder 1-6
Toulouse, Basilique Saint-Sernin
Box 11, Folder 1
Vigeois, Abbaye Saint-Pierre
Box 10, Folder 9
Asturias, Iglesia de San Salvador de Valdediós
Box 10, Folder 7
Jaca, Catedral de San Pedro Apóstol
Box 10, Folder 8
Piasca, Iglesia de Santa María
Scope and Content Note
Includes correspondence.
Notes and miscellaneous research materials,
1979-1988, undated
Box 11, Folder 8
Notebook,
1979-1980
Scope and Content Note
Includes shot lists and notes on sites.
Box 11, Folder 11
Miscellaneous notes and photocopies,
undated
Box 11, Folder 7
Photographs of manuscript illumination, sculpture and stained glass,
undated
Images for publications,
1982-1988
Box 12, Folder 1-3
"The Romanesque Architecture and Sculpture of Saint Caprais in Agen,"
1982
Scope and Content Note
Incomplete set.
Box 12, Folder 4
"Pilgrimage of Migration? A Case Study of Artistic Movement in the Early Romanesque,"
Zeitschrift für Kunstgeschichte 51,
1988
