The history of photography is often told as a chain of relationships connecting one great maker to the next. However, the real history of photography is much more complicated: it is a vast collection of interconnected stories stretching from East Asia to West African, from New Zealand to Uzbekistan and a complex interchange of fine art, scientific, anthropological, documentary, and amateur traditions forged by women and men alike.

Featuring over 130 works from the Solander Collection, An Alternative History of Photography invites us to look again at well-known works and new discoveries by major artists alongside forgotten greats, regional champions and unknown artists.

Unexpected images by legendary figures including Robert Frank, Diane Arbus, Man Ray, Ansel Adams, and Edward Weston are seen alongside those of Helen Stuart and John Lindt, early, self-trained practitioners Lady August Mostyn and Major Francis Greeley, and African studio photographers Sanlé Sory, Michel Kameni, and Malick Sidibé. The exhibition contains many rarities and "firsts" and spans photography's early decades with linchpin works by Sir John Herschel, William Henry Fox Talbot, Hippolyte Bayard, and Julia Margaret Cameron.

In addition to providing a touchstone for conversations about new perspectives in art history, An Alternative History of Photography engages with educational themes including colonialism, gender, class, privilege and racial and ethnic identity.

All works in this exhibition come from the Solander Collection. Photographs are vintage (made within a few years of the negative) except as noted.

Quotes

“The ‘alternative’ in the title suggests the need for both an expansion and a rearrangement. There is no definitive framework, no great Moby Dick to be harpooned, but instead a thousand possibilities, and a lot of work left to be done.” - Aperture

“Drawn from the Solander Collection, this history of photography is based on principles of diversity and democracy, allowing famous works to be seen with fresh eyes, and giving more obscure works the platform they deserve.” – The Guardian

“This is a show that bucks the historic notion of the white male genius photographer. Women were involved in photography from its earliest days, even if they weren’t always given the credit they deserved.” - Josh Basseches, ROM Director & CEO

“[An Alternative History of Photography] shows that the evolution of the art form was, in fact, a global phenomenon, incorporating and influenced by talented and innovative artists from around the world. [It] brings a new and original perspective to the art of photography and image making, that deepens our understanding of the rich diversity of the photographic practice.” - Josh Basseches, ROM Director & CEO

“[An Alternative History of Photography] attempts to show some of the rich history forged on the edges of hauteur photography, what some might call rough edges, detouring around those approved-by-rote classics.” - Photographic Canadiana, 2022

"Books of the Year 2022" - History Today

"Top of the Stack - Colossal's Favorite Art Books of 2022" – Colossal

"Five books to start the autumn right" – Il Giornale dell'Arte

WORKS
130-150 photographs

DIMENSIONS
See checklist below.

SPACE REQUIREMENTS
300 linear feet (100 linear meters)

EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMMING
Curator available for lectures and panel discussions.

EXHIBITOR RESOURCES
Accompanying exhibition catalog available.

INQUIRIES
exhibitions@curatorial.org | 626.577.0044

FEE
Please inquire.

VENUES

The Photographers’ Gallery | London, United Kingdom
October 6, 2022 – February 9, 2023

Royal Ontario Museum | Toronto, Canada
August 14, 2021 – January 16, 2022