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Exhibition

New Topographics

Photographs of a Man-Altered Landscape
July 17–October 3, 2010

A turning point in the history of photography, the 1975 exhibition New Topographics signaled a radical shift away from traditional depictions of landscape. Pictures of transcendent natural vistas gave way to unromanticized views of stark industrial landscapes, suburban sprawl, and everyday scenes not usually given a second glance. This restaging of the exhibition includes the work of all 10 photographers from the original show: Robert Adams, Lewis Baltz, Bernd and Hilla Becher, Joe Deal, Frank Gohlke, Nicholas Nixon, John Schott, Stephen Shore, and Henry Wessel.

New Topographics: Photographs of a Man-Altered Landscape is co-organized by the Center for Creative Photography, The University of Arizona, and the George Eastman House International Museum of Photography and Film. Support for the San Francisco presentation is provided by The Bernard Osher Foundation.

Robert Adams, photo of trailer in front of house
Belcher, grid of eight photographs of industrial building
Stephen Shore, color photo of Montana town
John Schott, photo of four teepee structures
Nicholas Nixon, photograph of buildings in Boston
Frank Gohlke, black and white photo of canal in Albuquerque

Robert Adams, Tract House, Westminster, Colorado, 1974, George Eastman House collections; Robert Adams, courtesy of Fraenkel Gallery, San Francisco, and Matthew Marks Gallery, New York

Bernd and Hilla Becher, Preparation Plant, Harry E. Colliery Coal Breaker, Wiles Barre, Pennsylvania, USA, 1974; © Hilla Becher, 2009

Stephen Shore, 2nd Street East and South Main Street, Kalispell, Montana, August 22, 1974; © Stephen Shore

John Schott, Untitled from the series Route 66 Motels, 1973; George Eastman House collections; © John Schott

Nicholas Nixon, Buildings on Tremont Street, Boston, 1975; George Eastman House collections; © Nicholas Nixon

Frank Gohlke, Irrigation Canal, Albuquerque, New Mexico, 1974; George Eastman House collections; © Frank Gohlke