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Briscoe Center Showing Polidori 'Present/Past' Exhibit Share This on LinkedIn   Tweet This   Forward This

7 March 2022

The Dolph Briscoe Center for American History at the University of Texas at Austin opened Present/Past: The Robert Polidori Photographic Archive last Friday.

Robert Polidori. Control Room, Reactor 4, Chernobyl (2001).

Polidori's photographs bear witness to the passage of time, locating evidence of history in the spaces we build and live within. He is best known for his detailed, large-format color film photographs that explore the built world, capturing layers of history in extraordinary detail.

The large-format prints on display include Polidori's significant projects: the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and subsequent flooding in New Orleans, the Château de Versailles, Havana and Chernobyl, as well as his Metropolis series, which documents population and urban growth.

Present/Past: The Robert Polidori Photographic Archive, made possible with support from the Briscoe Family Endowment, run through Dec. 16. Admission is free. For details on exhibition hours and visitor information, please go to https://briscoecenter.org/visit/.

Briscoe Center Opens New Robert Polidori Exhibit

AUSTIN, Texas -- The Dolph Briscoe Center for American History at the University of Texas at Austin is pleased to announce the current exhibition Present/Past: The Robert Polidori Photographic Archive.

Robert Polidori is one of the world's most acclaimed architectural photographers of human habitats and environments. His photographs bear witness to the passage of time, locating evidence of history in the spaces we build and live within. He is best known for his detailed, large-format color film photographs that explore the built world, capturing layers of history in extraordinary detail. With selections from Polidori's comprehensive photographic archive, part of the Briscoe Center's vast photography collections, Present/Past takes viewers beyond the widely acknowledged aesthetic value of his images.

The large-format prints on display include Polidori's significant projects: the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and subsequent flooding in New Orleans, the Château de Versailles, Havana and Chernobyl, as well as his Metropolis series, which documents population and urban growth. The exhibit demonstrates the evidentiary significance of his work, which captures the impact of humanity and the passage of time. Polidori's collection offers visual reflections on how the evidence of history is preserved, inviting us to question what lasts and why.

In addition to large-format prints, the exhibit includes materials from the full breadth of the Polidori Archive. Just as Polidori's work documents layers of change over time, the exhibit examines the complex process behind the photographer's final works. From his initial Polaroids and annotated images to proofs and final prints, Present/Past reveals the layers of evidence contained in the collection as a whole.

The Briscoe Center is grateful to a Chicago-area family who generously donated the Robert Polidori Photographic Archive for teaching and research. The donors wish to remain anonymous. Consisting of more than 85,000 archive prints, the collection is valued at more than $30 million. Polidori's archive is rich in resources that show the working process behind creating the prints. With more than 20,000 unique Polaroid film prints, 53,000 contact prints and 11,000 proof prints, annotated book drafts and more, the collection fully documents the photographer's creative process.

Present/Past: The Robert Polidori Photographic Archive was made possible with support from the Briscoe Family Endowment. It was designed by McKinney York Architects. Admission is free. For details on exhibition hours and visitor information, please go to https://briscoecenter.org/visit/.


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