Press Materials

Paper Promises demonstrates the importance of photographic reproduction in shaping and circulating perceptions of America and its people during a critical period of political tension and territorial expansion. The exhibition traces mid-nineteenth-century experimentation with and exploitation of photography on paper, chronicling the ways in which concern about manipulation and duplication of paper photographs became tempered by enthusiasm for the social connectivity they offered. Rare photographs and negatives are featured alongside iconic images from the formative years of photography in the United States. Curated by Mazie Harris.

Interaction with paper plays an integral role in the practice of many photographers working today. Some create paper models with images gleaned from current events, popular magazines, or the internet for the express purpose of photographing them. Others cut, layer, fold, and/or assemble representational photographs to introduce tactile or narrative elements. The exhibition features works by Thomas Demand, Christiane Feser, Daniel Gordon, Soo Kim, Matt Lipps, and Christopher Russell.

Photographer Robert Polidori, known for his images of architecture and human habitats, created a series of images of the Getty Center shortly before the opening of the multipurpose complex in 1997. As the Center celebrates its twentieth anniversary, this exhibition features behind-the-scenes views of the building and galleries as objects from J. Paul Getty’s painting, sculpture, and decorative arts collections were being installed in the Museum for the first time.

LOS ANGELES – The J. Paul Getty Museum announced today a major gift of photographs from collector and film industry executive Bruce Berman.

Two-part exhibition at the Getty Center features rarely seen self-portraits and photographs on the occasion of Hockney's 80th birthday