In this illustrated lecture about seeing, art historian Eugenia Parry, a colleague of Sam Wagstaff, considers the rarity of Wagstaff's independent eye, his pioneering choices, and how collecting photography extended his own spiritual quest. Free; advance ticket required.
Tuesday, May 17, 7:00 p.m.
Getty Center: Museum Lecture Hall
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The Thrill of the Chase: The Wagstaff Collection of Photographs
March 15–July 31, 2016Getty Center
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Samuel J. Wagstaff Jr. was an influential art curator, patron and collector. In 1973, with the assistance of his lover Robert Mapplethorpe, Wagstaff came to believe that art photography was significantly undervalued. Over the next decade, he assembled one of the most important private collections of photographs in the world, which helped raise the profile of the medium and the price of photographic works. When he sold his collection to the J. Paul Getty Museum in 1984, it became the cornerstone of the Museum’s newly formed Department of Photographs.
This exhibition presents a selection of Wagstaff’s collection that spans the history of photography, from neglected French photographers of the 1850s to modernists Man Ray and Edward Weston to late 20th-century photographers Larry Clark, Joel-Peter Witkin, and Peter Hujar.
RELATED EVENTS
TALK
TOURS
Curator’s Gallery Tour
Paul Martineau, associate curator of photographs, the J. Paul Getty Museum, leads a gallery tour of the exhibition The Thrill of the Chase: The Wagstaff Collection of Photographs. Meet under the stairs in the Entrance Hall.
Tuesday, June 2, 2:30 p.m.
Getty Center: Museum galleries
Exhibition Tour
This tour provides an overview of two photography exhibitions: Robert Mapplethorpe’s classic and controversial work and the historic and contemporary photographs collected by his lover, Sam Wagstaff. Meet at the Information Desk.
Tuesday–Sunday, May 3–July 31, 2:30 p.m.
Getty Center: Museum galleries
MOBILE TOUR
Pick up a GettyGuide® iPod free of charge in the Museum Entrance Hall.
PUBLICATION
Publications are available in the Getty Museum Store, by calling (310) 440-7333, or online at shop.getty.edu.
The Thrill of the Chase: The Wagstaff Collection of Photographs at the J. Paul Getty Museum
Paul Martineau
With an essay by Eugenia Parry and an introduction by Weston Naef
GALLERY TEXT
Read and download the gallery text that accompanies this exhibition in PDF (7 PP, 354 KB).
RELATED EXHIBITION
Robert Mapplethorpe: The Perfect Medium
Samuel Wagstaff supported Robert Mapplethorpe throughout his career. This major retrospective exhibition mixes Mapplethorpe's most iconic images with lesser-known photographs.
March 15–July 31, 2016
Getty Center
Image Credit: Self-Portrait,1985, Robert Mapplethorpe, gelatin silver print. Jointly acquired by the J. Paul Getty Trust and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, with funds provided by the J. Paul Getty Trust and the David Geffen Foundation. © Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation