Ansel Adams photographs, circa 1962-1975

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Summary

Creators:
Adams, Ansel, 1902-1984
Abstract:
485 black and white photographs by Ansel Adams documenting the land, building sites, and early activities of the University of California Santa Cruz campus.
Extent:
12 Linear Feet 21 boxes
Language:
English
Preferred citation:

Ansel Adams photographs. MS2. Special Collections and Archives, University Library, University of California, Santa Cruz.

Background

Scope and content:

The collection includes 31 polariod prints, 9 postcard/offset reproductions, 387 silver gelatin proof prints, and 40 matted prints. The majority of the prints are stamped "rough proof" on the verso and are duplicated in various sizes. The proof prints range in size from 3 x 4" polaroid prints, up to 16 x 20" silver gelatin prints. Other prints are dry mounted on archival and non-archival matte board, ranging in total size from approximately 16 x 20" to 24 x 30". Nearly two thirds of the collection consists of duplicate prints.

Biographical / historical:

Ansel Adams (February 20, 1902 - Aprril 22, 1984), was an American photographer and environmentalist known for his landscape photography of the American West.

This photographic project was created in part, to document the building of the University of California Santa Cruz campus, known as the "Campus Site Project", and in part for the Fiat Lux commission.

The vast majority of the prints in this collection contain working photographs, which Ansel Adams termed "rough proofs". The rough proofs were used for layout and production purposes, and were not meant to be exhibited or used for publication, as they did not represent the fine print quality that Adams is known for. In addition, almost all of the images are untitled, and many of the prints are duplicated in several sizes.

Some of the prints are matted on board, and were hung in various academic offices, some were used for architects' reference and planning. Many of these prints include irregularities that occur from handling, and some include printer's marks on the mattes. Almost all the matted prints have been signed by Adams.

Adams enjoyed documenting the early pre-campus: the historic Henry Cowell ranch buildings, meadows and redwood glades, oak trees, and the initial campus buildings and construction scenes. Adams reveals his enthusiasm for this natural setting in his charter address written in 1963, and delivered March 30, 1967. For the text of this address see the "Additional Collection Guides" section in this finding aid.

The collection includes the earliest scenes of campus life, notably Dean McHenry standing amongst the trees with the new McHenry Library behind him, and giving a speech to faculty at their first luncheon. The students are documented on registration day of the very first academic year -- automobiles pull up to a simple folding table and campus volunteers assist newcomers. Later images show a group of students painting plein-air and walking past the Cowell College fountain.

Fiat Lux ProjectIn 1963, Ansel Adams along with Nancy Newhall were given an assignment by UC President Clark Kerr to produce images on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the University of California. This work culminated in the centennial book, Fiat Lux: The University of California with bookmaker Adrian Wilson.

"For three years, Adams and Newhall toured the state, visiting nine campuses and dozens of the UC's scientific field stations, reserves, observatories, and agricultural outposts. Fiat Lux was intended not as a document of the university as it was, but rather a portrait of the university as it would be. UC President Clark Kerr asked the artists to project through words and photographs, as far as possible, "the next hundred years"- impossible, of course, but a provocative invitation that the artists embraced. The Fiat Lux project was a massive endeavor, producing 605 fine prints and over 6,700 negatives, far more than the 1,000 images stipulated in Adams's contract. After Adams's lifetime devotion to Yosemite, Fiat Lux was probably the biggest single project of his life". Excerpt, The Bancroft Library: http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/omeka/exhibits/show/fiat-lux/

Acquisition information:
The original provenance and physical arrangement of this collection is undetermined. All or part of the initial set of photographs perished in the Central Services fire on the UCSC campus in 1972. Replacement prints were purchased with Chancellor's funds in 1975. When and how the rough proofs were acquired is not known.
Processing information:

Processing by Patrick Haywood and Debra Roussopoulos. Processing completed in 2015. EAD encoding by Debra Roussopoulos in 2015.

Arrangement:

Matted and unmatted photographs are separated, and arranged by image subject and size.

Physical location:
Stored at Special Collections and Archives.
Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Indexed terms

Subjects:
Photography

Access and use

Restrictions:

Collection open for research.

Terms of access:

Copyright for the majority of items in this collection is owned by the Ansel Adams Publishing Rights Trust (ansel@adamstrust.com). Reproduction or distribution of any work protected by copyright beyond that allowed by fair use requires permission from the copyright owner. It is the responsibility of the user to determine whether a use is fair use, and to obtain any necessary permissions. For more information see UCSC Special Collections and Archives policy on Reproduction and Use.

Copyright for the Fiat Lux photographs (box 21) is owned by Regents of the University of California, and is managed by the California Museum of Photography at UC Riverside. Reproduction or distribution of any work protected by copyright beyond that allowed by fair use requires permission from the copyright owner. It is the responsibility of the user to determine whether a use is fair use, and to obtain any necessary permissions. For more information see UCSC Special Collections and Archives policy on Reproduction and Use.

Preferred citation:

Ansel Adams photographs. MS2. Special Collections and Archives, University Library, University of California, Santa Cruz.

Location of this collection:
Special Collections and Archives, University Library
1156 High Street
Santa Cruz, CA 95064, US
Contact:
(831) 459-2547
speccoll@library.ucsc.edu
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