Sometimes I get pangs of nostalgia for times I never lived during and for events I never was a part of. When I look at old photography for example, I’m like Oliver Twist pushing my face up on the glass and peering in at the lives of people I will never meet. Great photography can make you feel like you have a connection, even if momentary to the subject being viewed through the lens.
And as it happens, there are a few events happening in Boston this month that stir up this feeling of faux nostalgia, seem well curated, and definitely warrant a gander.
The High Art of Photographing Advertising
When: On view now – October 9th, 2010
Where: Baker Library | Bloomberg Center
Harvard Business School, Soldiers Field, Boston, MA 02163
How: Official Website
What/Why:
“On September 18, 1934, a stunning exhibition sponsored by the National Alliance of Art and Industry (NAAI) and the Photographic Illustrators, Inc. opened in the gallery of New York City’s 30 Rockefeller Plaza. The show featured 250 works by the top artistic and commercial photographers of the day, with a particular focus on advertising and industrial images. In 1935, approximately 125 prints from the NAAI exhibition came to Harvard Business School, which was actively collecting photographs for exhibition and classroom use. “The High Art of Photographic Advertising” revisits the 1934 exhibition—a collection that seventy-five years later survives as a telling chapter in evolving perceptions about photography’s artistic, commercial, and cultural significance.”
Avedon Fashion:1944-2000
When: On view now through January 17, 2011
Where: Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
Avenue of the Arts
465 Huntington Avenue
Boston, MA 02115
How: Official Website
What/Why:
“Richard Avedon was one of the greatest image-makers of the twentieth century. He revolutionized fashion photography with his imaginative, spirited portrayals of the “good life” showing beautiful women wearing extraordinary clothes in irresistible settings, as well as memorable portrayals that are both elegant and reserved. The upbeat spirit and innovative design of his compositions caught the eye of editors and art directors at Harper’s Bazaarand Vogue—the primary magazines for which he worked—while his vision of the modern American woman, one of wit, individuality, and fast-lane glamour, captivated the public. His enormous success defined the role of the high-profile fashion photographer that we know today, and many of his images have become icons of photographic history.
Avedon’s career as a fashion photographer is displayed decade by decade in this exceptional traveling exhibition from the International Center of Photography in New York, the first comprehensive survey of Avedon’s fashion photography since 1978. “
Away We Go -Vintage Travel Posters from the Collections of the Boston Public Library
When: On view now through October 17, 2010
Where: Boston Public Library-Central Library
700 Boylston St.,Boston MA 02116
How: Official Website
What/Why:
“The golden age of travel is brought to colorful life in a new exhibition of vintage travel posters at the Boston Public Library. Away We Go! invites visitors to journey back to the early twentieth century via some of the most beautiful and important vintage travel posters from the BPL’s collection.
On display through October 17, the exhibition is organized as an epic trip around the world, starting and ending in Boston. Visitors will journey to twenty-eight hand-picked destinations, on six continents, on a globetrotting route nearly 45,000 miles long. Along the way, extraordinary, eye-catching posters are vivid reminders of the beauty, excitement, and adventure of travel during the 1920s-1950s, when a world of enticing destinations and new modes of transportation beckoned onlookers to journey to distant lands. Visitors will be able to create personal, take-away versions of their own travel posters and can also browse a special, travel-related book section located within the exhibition.”
I have always loved travel posters. From a stylistic standpoint as well as the feeling of excitement and adventure that seems to leap off the prints. Looking at the BPL’s flickr page and viewing the collection, led me to researching flights “for fun” and appraising an around the worldesque trip. Verdict: Mere tuppence.
As the description suggests, the posters from the 1920-1950s are of particular interest as advances in technology made it possible for people to leave their lives behind for a week or two and travel to faraway lands. It’s hard to imagine what that must feel like considering I was born into an era where airplanes have always been the norm, but I imagine it’s exhilarating to have that opportunity for the first time. Maybe one day we will feel the same way about technologies that allow us to travel to different planets and see for ourselves if the moon is really made of cheese. I’d like to think it tastes like Babybel. ♥
