National Gallery of Canada

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A sumptuous celebration of one of the world's most striking photograph collections from 1967 up to 2017. This publication celebrates fifty years of collecting photographs at the National Gallery of Canada. In 1967 when the collection was established the photography market was in its infancy and the collection reflects the availability of in depth collections of work by some of the forefathers of the medium such as Charles Negre, William Henry Fox Talbot, Gustave Le Gray and Roger Fenton among others. Within a few short years of starting to build the collection the science of photographic preservation and conservation was making remarkable strides and influencing the acquisition and exhibition of photographs in museums. This publication celebrates the collecting of photographs, the historical and art historical context of their making and the deepening of our understanding of their physical nature.

"This volume, featuring 128 full-page colour illustrations, showcases a wide-ranging selection of the most outstanding works from Canada's largest art museum. Each of the pieces chosen for inclusion is introduced by a curatorial specialist, who sets it in its historical context and comments on its meaning and its place in the artist's oeuvre." "Pride of place is given to the Gallery's unparalleled holdings in Canadian art, but European art - paintings, sculptures, prints and drawings - is equally well represented. Masterworks from the Inuit art collection are also included, as well as examples from the Gallery's small but distinguished Asian collection. In recent decades, photographs have become an increasingly important part of the Gallery's collecting mandate, both through its own collection and that of its affiliate the Canadian Museum of Contemporary Photography, and this emphasis too is amply reflected here."--Jacket.