Exhibition Fact Sheet from the National Building Museum
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For Immediate Release:
February 18, 2009
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Architecture of Authority: Fact Sheet
Photographs by Richard Ross
Exhibition
Architecture of Authority: Photographs by Richard Ross
When
April 18, 2009 through August 16, 2009
Where
National Building Museum, first floor galleries
Overview
Architecture of Authority: Photographs by Richard Ross is a collection of 44 large-format color photographs that compels us to consider how buildings are designed (or retrofitted) to exercise power. The building types in the photographs vary, from prisons and courtrooms to the seemingly benign preschool classroom or telephone booth. Their juxtaposition provokes visitors to contemplate which architectural traits and design features are shared by these ostensibly unrelated spaces. Ross' photographs encourage visitors to confront the jarring notion that the spatial features of our everyday lives might have something in common with sites of surveillance, repression, and control.
About the Artist
Originally from New York, Richard Ross has taught at the University of California, Santa Barbara, since 1977. He has photographed for publications including the New York Times Magazine, Los Angeles Times Magazine, and Vogue. Ross was the principal photographer for the K. Paul Getty Museum documenting their Villa restoration project and is the author of numerous books. Ross has an extensive exhibition record in the United States and Europe.
Curators
Architecture of Authority was organized by Aperture, New York. The coordinating curator for this exhibition at the National Building Museum is Laura Schiavo.
The National Building Museum is America’s leading cultural institution dedicated to exploring and celebrating architecture, design, engineering, construction, and planning. Chartered by Congress in 1980 and open to the public since 1985, the Museum has become a vital forum for exchanging ideas and information about the built environment through its exhibitions, education programs, and publications. The Museum is located at 401 F Street NW, Washington, D.C. Museum hours are Monday through Saturday from 10 am to 5 pm and Sunday from 11 am to 5 pm. Admission is free. Museum Shop. Café. Public inquiries: 202.272.2448 or visit www.nbm.org.
