Harry Callahan

Providence

Maker

Harry Callahan (American, 1912-1999 b. Detroit, Michigan), (RISD Faculty 1961 - 1976, Photography)

Title

Providence

Year

1962

Medium

Materials/Techniques

Techniques

Dimensions

Image: 22.2 x 34 cm (8 3/4 x 13 3/8 inches)

Credit / Object Number

Credit

Gift of Dr. and Mrs. J. Patrick Kennedy

Object Number

2008.119.8

Type

Exhibition History

The Performative Self-Portrait
May 13, 2023 – Nov 12, 2023

Label copy

This view of Providence, taken as Harry Callahan marked his second year of teaching photography at RISD, stands out as one of the only times he included himself in the frame. Though he is better known for black and white photographs bearing a stark modernist aesthetic, Callahan shot in color throughout his career, and he used it exclusively after 1977. Color photography was often dismissed by artists and critics who felt it belonged in the realm of commercial advertising and family photo albums. Lacking this prejudice, Callahan reveled in the dynamic chromatic relationships he found reflected in storefronts and went on to make an extensive series of them.


–Matthew Kluk (Brown PhD 2025, History of Art and Architecture), RISD proctor 2021–2022

Image use

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Tombstone

Harry Callahan (American, 1912-1999 b. Detroit, Michigan)
Providence, 1962
Dye transfer print
Image: 22.2 x 34 cm (8 3/4 x 13 3/8 inches)
Gift of Dr. and Mrs. J. Patrick Kennedy 2008.119.8

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