The Stanford
University Libraries, Department of Special Collections,
is pleased to announce the exhibition Herbert Matter:
Modernist Photography and Graphic Design. This
exhibition celebrates the work of Herbert Matter (1907–1984),
best known for his international contributions in photography,
photomontage and graphic design. Herbert Matter:
Modernist Photography and Graphic Design will be
on view at Stanford University’s Cecil H. Green
Library, Peterson Gallery, second floor of the Bing
Wing from October 20, 2005 through February 11, 2006.
The exhibition is free and open to the public.
Herbert
Matter studied with Fernand Léger and Amédée
Ozenfant at the Académie Moderne in Paris in
the late 1920s before returning to Switzerland to design
a series of Swiss travel posters which illustrate his
signature photomontage technique. When he arrived in
the United States in 1936 his first clients were the
Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), and the publisher Condé
Nast. Other clients included the Guggenheim Museum (1958–1968),
Knoll Furniture (1946–1966), and the New Haven
Railroad (1954). During this time Matter became a tenured
professor at Yale and helped to shape the university’s
photography and graphic design program (1952–1976).
Matter’s advanced techniques in graphic design
and photography became part of a new visual narrative
that began in the 1930s, which have since evolved into
familiar design idioms such as overprinting—where
an image extends beyond the frame—and the bold
use of color, size, and placement in typography. Such
techniques often characterize both pre-war European
Modernism and the post-war expression of that movement
in the United States.
Matter’s
lifelong interest in the work of sculptor Alberto Giacometti
led to a compelling body of photographic work. The two
artists met in 1960 when Matter began photographing
the sculptor’s work leading to a twenty-year project
that remained a personal and profound artistic endeavor
for Matter. The extensive group of photographs of Giacometti’s
work represents the largest series of work in the collection
and includes different layouts, and iterations of photographs
related to Matter’s book Alberto Giacometti,
published posthumously by Harry N. Abrams, Inc., in
1987. The exhibition aims to reflect Matter’s
unique contributions to the field by balancing examples
of his commercial graphic design work for magazines
and businesses, with his innovative explorations in
photography. |
|
The Matter archive,
acquired by the Stanford University Libraries in 2004, represents
the largest collection of visual material by a single artist
in the library. It includes a combination of thousands of
fine art and commercial prints and photographs, negatives
including glass plates, design process materials such as sketches,
paste-up layout work, collages, exhibition materials, correspondence,
and 16mm film. The Stanford University Libraries first acquired
a collection of research materials from Matter’s estate
that pertained to the R. Buckminster Fuller World Game—an
archive of original graphic art, film, video and audio media;
photographs; and correspondence. Roberto Trujillo, Frances
& Charles Field Curator of Special Collections, subsequently
learned that the entire Matter archive had become available
and worked with various curators, faculty, and library administrators
to acquire it. The collection is being processed and catalogued
by Jeffrey Head, who is also curating the exhibition. Head,
who has extensive knowledge of Matter’s work in the
context of modern photography and design, writes about design
for various publications internationally.
In conjunction
with the exhibition, the Stanford University Libraries announces
the publication of the exhibition catalogue Herbert Matter:
Modernist Photography and Graphic Design. The catalogue
includes many reproductions, many of which are in color, along
with photographs reproduced in duotone. It features an introductory
essay by Jeffrey Head, and was designed by John T. Hill, a
colleague and former student of Matter. The cost of the catalogue
is $20.00, tax included, plus applicable shipping/handling
charges. To order copies of the catalogue, please contact
the Department of Special Collections, Green Library, Stanford
University, Stanford, CA 94305-6004; attn: Lisa Marie Hall,
or e-mail to speccollpubs@stanford.edu.
LOCATION: Peterson
Gallery, Green Library Bing Wing, Second Floor Stanford University,
Stanford, CA
NOTE: first-time
visitors must register at the east entrance portal to gain
access to the library. Green Library's east wing entrance
faces Meyer Library. For a map of campus and transportation
information, go to http://www.stanford.edu/home/visitors/maps.html
HOURS: Exhibit
cases are illuminated Monday-Friday from 10 am to 6 pm; Saturday
from 10 am to 5 pm, and Sunday 1 to 6 pm. The gallery is accessible
whenever Green Library is open and hours vary with the academic
schedule. For library hours, call 650-723-0931.
NOTE: Green Library
will be closed December 11, 17–18, 24–27 and 31
