Death/Destruction - International Center of Photography

International Center of Photography

By Mandy Litwin

The International Center of Photography is an internationally well-known and highly respected organization. Essentially, their goal is to keep photography and visual culture alive. They do this in several ways. One way is through the exhibitions that are always taking place at their museum in Manhattan, New York. Another way is through the use of their website.

The ICP also contributes money to the community and education. They offer various workshops and classes for people to come learn about art! In addition, they also host the Infinity Awards which is an event that continues “honoring outstanding achievements in photography and visual arts”. It first started in 1985 and is still continuing annually today.

The website is set up as a great resource and archive of hundreds of thousands of photos and their respected artists. The website is easy to use and very efficient when it comes to searching for new material to research. With their browse feature, it is easy to trickle down to an exact search in an attempt for anyone to search for something specific.

One example of an artist I had not known before by using their search engine is Lewis Baltz. He was a visual artist who is well known for his work in the New Topographics Exhibition that took place in 1975. His work, along with others, is minimal. It aimed to capture a “man-altered landscape”, much different than the natural landscapes we recognize from Ansel Adams. The project made a great impact with its simplified aesthetic of the space. People are still trying to emulate this style to this day and keep their work alive.

Park City, interior, 38

Questions for the class:

Have you ever used ICP as a resource?

If so, what is your experience with it?