Ralph Gibson
(1939)
Ralph Gibson (b. January 16, 1939, Los Angeles, California) is an American art photographer best known for his photographic books. His images often incorporate fragments with erotic and mysterious undertones, building narrative meaning through contextualization and surreal juxtaposition.
Ralph Gibson studied photography while in the US Navy and then at the San Francisco Art Institute. He began his professional career as an assistant to Dorothea Lange and went on to work with Robert Frank on two films. Gibson has maintained a lifelong fascination with books and book-making. Since the appearance in 1970 of THE SOMNAMBULIST, his work has steadily impelled towards the printed page. To date he has produced over 40 monographs, his most current projects being “State of the Axe” published by Yale University Press in Fall of 2008 and “NUDE” by Taschen (2009). His photographs are included in over one hundred and fifty museum collections around the world, and have appeared in hundreds of exhibitions.
Gibson has received fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts (1973, 1975, 1986), a Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst (D.A.A.D.) Exchange, Berlin (1977), a New York State Council of the Arts (C.A.P.S.) fellowship (1977), and the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation (1985). The Rencontres d’Arles festival presented his work in 1975, 1976, 1977, 1979, 1989 and 1994. His book “Syntax” received a mention for the Rencontres d’Arles Book Award in 1983. He was decorated as an Officier de L’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres (1986) and appointed, Commandeur de L’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres (2005) by the French government.
His awards include: Leica Medal of Excellence Award (1988), “150 Years of Photography” Award, Photographic Society of Japan (1989), a Grande Medaille de la Ville d’Arles (1994) and the Lucie Award for lifetime achievement (2008). Gibson also received an honorary doctorate of Fine Arts from the University of Maryland (1991), and a second honorary doctorate from the Ohio Wesleyan University (1998). He has worked exclusively with Leica for almost 50 years. Gibson currently lives in New York and travels frequently to Europe and Brazil.
January 16th, 1939, Los Angeles, California
RESIDES
New York, New York
New York, New York
EDUCATION
1967-68: Assistant to Robert Frank
1967-68: Assistant to Robert Frank
1961-62: Assistant to Dorthea Lange
1960-62: San Francisco Art Institute
1956-60: Studied photography, U.S. Navy
AWARDS
2011 FOTOmentor Lifetime Award, Palm Beach Photographic Center
2011 FOTOmentor Lifetime Award, Palm Beach Photographic Center
2007 The Lucie Award
2002 Appointed, Commandeur de L'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres de France
1999 Silver Plum Design Trust for Public Space
1997 Doctor of Fine Arts, Ohio Wesleyan University
1994 Grand Medal of the City of Arles, France
1991 Honorary Doctor of Fine Arts, University of Maryland
1989 Eastman Kodak Grant to photography, "L'Histoire de France "
"150 Years of Photography" Award, Photographic Society of Japan
1988 Leica Medal of Excellence Award
1986 Decorated, Officier de L'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres de France
National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship
1985 John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Fellowship
1977 D.A.A.D West Berlin, Germany
C.A.P.S., New York State Council of the Arts Fellowship
1975 National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship
1973 National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship
PUBLIC COLLECTIONS
Museum of Modern Art, New York
Museum of Modern Art, New York
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
Whitney Museum of American Art
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
J. P. Getty Museum, Los Angeles, CA
John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation
Dallas Museum of Art, Texas
High Museum of Art, Atlanta
San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, California
Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, Texas
The Brooklyn Museum of Art, New York
The Jewish Museum, New York
Israel Museum, Tel Aviv
The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
The National Museum of Modern Art, Kyoto
The International Center of Photography, New York
Yokohama Museum, Japan
Biblioteque National, Paris
Los Angeles County Museum of Art
Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
The Victoria and Albert Museum, London
The Parrish Art Museum, Southampton, NY
National Gallery, Ottawa
Muséo de Belles Artes, Argentina
Santa Barbara Museum of Art, California
Pasadena Art Museum, California
Fogg Art Museum, Boston
Delaware Art Museum, Wilmington, DE
Museum fur Kunst und Gewerbe, Hamburg, West Germany
Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam
Kunsthalle Mannheim, Germany
Winterthur, Switzerland
The Kinsey Institute
Museum Ludwig, Cologne, West Germany
The Guild Hall Museum, East Hampton, NY
New Orleans Museum of Art, Louisiana
International Museum of Photography at George Eastman House, Rochester, New York
University of New Mexico, Alburquerque
Museum of Fine Arts, St. Petersburg, Florida
Metropolitan Museum of Art, Tokyo
The Cleveland Museum of Art, Ohio
Seattle Art Museum, Volunteer Park, Washington
Center for Creative Photography, Tuscon, Arizona
Australian National Gallery, Canberra, Australia
National Gallery of Victoria, Victoria, Australia
Allen Art Museum, Oberlin College, Ohio
John and Mable Ringling Museum, Sarasota, Florida
Boca Raton Museum of Art, Florida
Smithsonian Institute, Washington, D.C.
Fondation Select, Geneva
Musee Reattu, Arles, France
Musee Contini, Marseilles, France
Virginia Museum of Fine Art, Richmond, Virginia
Fotografiska Museet, Stockholm
Atkins Museum of Fine Art, Kansas City, Missouri
Ruttenberg Arts Foundation, Chicago
Dunn and Bradstreet, New York
J.B. Speed Museum, Louisville, Kentucky
Graham Nash Collection, Hollywood, California
Readers Digest, New York
Cowin and Company, New York
Willkie, Farr, and Gallagher, New York
Paul, Weiss, Rifkin, New York
Museo Fratelli Alinari, Florence
Expo Photo Museum, Osaka, Japan
Musee de la Photographie, Charleroi, Belgium
Akron Art Museum, OhioWestlich Museum, Vienna
The Art Institute of Chicago
American Friends of Jerusalem Museum, Israel
New Orleans Museum of Art, Louisiana
Mead Art Museum, Amherst, Massachusetts
The Carnegie Museum of Pittsburgh, PA
The New York Public Library, New York
The Mineeapolis Institute of Art, Minnesota
The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts
The Arts Club of Chicago
The Tampa Museum of Art, Florida
The Polaroid Collection, Cambridge, Mass.
American Friends of Jerusalem Museum, Israel
Atkins Museum of Fine Arts, Kansas City, Missouri
The Saint Louis Art Museum, St. Louis, Missouri
Hood Museum, Dartmouth, Hanover, New Hampshire
Yale University Art Gallery, New Haven, Connecticut
University of California, Los Angeles
The Cooper Union, New York
Washington University Art Gallery, St. Louis, Misouri
The Aldrich Museum, Greenport, Connecticut
H.F. Johnson Museum, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York
Baruch College, New York
University of Florida Art Museum, Gainsville, Florida
The Lowe Memorial Library, Columbia University, New York
University Librarian, Georgetown University, Washington, D.C.
Davidson Art Center, Wesleyan University, Middletown, Connecticut
The City University of New York
University of Colorado Art Gallery, Boulder
The New School of Social Research, New York
Ohio Wesleyan University
Lehigh University Gallery, Bethlehelm, Pennsylvania
Davidson College Art Gallery, Davidson, North Carolina
The Pingry School, Martinsville, New Jersey
Rockland Community College, Suffern, New York
The Hackley School, Tarrytown, New York
The Binghampton University Art Museum, New York
The Union Hospital Foundation, Union, New Jersey
Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York
Holy Cross University, Worcester, Massachusetts
University of South Florida, Tampa, Florida
Michigan University, East Lansing, Michigan
Farleigh Dickenson University, Teaneck, New Jersey
University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia
University of Wisconsin, Madison
Allen Art Museum, Oberlin College, Ohio
Bates College Museum of Art, Lewiston, ME
Walsh Gallery at Seton Hall University, South Orange
Vanderbilt University Fine Arts Gallery, Nashville, Tennessee
Hood Museum of Art. Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH
Nasher Museum of Art at Duke University, Durham, NC
Lake Forest College, Lake Forest, IL
Villanova University Art Gallery, Villanova, PA
Tulane University Collection, New Orleans, LA
Georgetown University Library, Washington, DC
Lafayette College Art Galleries and Art Collections, Easton, PA
William Benton Museum of Art, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT
University of Richmond Museum, Richmond, VA
Mead Art Museum at Amherst College, Amherst, MA
Visual Studies Workshop, Rochester, New York
Fashion Institute of Technology, New York
Chase Manhattan Bank, New York
Cedar Crest College, Allentown, Pennsylvania
Whatcom Museum of History and Art, Bellingham, Washington
The University of Texas, Austin
Wellesley College Museum, Massachusetts
Meadows Art Museum and Sculpture Court, Southern
Methodist University, Dallas, Texas
Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island
Clark University, Worcester, New York
Fordham University, New York
Rose Art Museum, Brandeis University, Waltham, Massachusetts
Saint Johns University, New York
University Art Museum, California State University, Long Beach
The Hoarce Mann School, New York
David Winston Bell Gallery, Brown University, Rhode Island
Cantor Art Gallery, Holy Cross University, Worcester, Massachusetts
University of South Florida, Tampa
Michigan University, East Lansing
Bloomfield College, Bloomfield, New Jersey
Farleigh Dickenson University, Teaneck, New Jersey
University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia
University of Wisconsin, Madison
Methodist University, Dallas, Texas
EXHIBITIONS
2013
The Museum of Image and Sound, Sao Paulo, Brazil
The Museum of Image and Sound, Sao Paulo, Brazil
China Central Academy of Fine Arts, Beijing
Gold Street Studios, Victoria, Australia
2012
The High Museum of Art, Atlanta, GA
The High Museum of Art, Atlanta, GA
Gallery 916, Tokyo, Japan
Point Light Gallery, Sydney, Australia
Les Murs (The Old City Walls) Toulouse, France
2011
Palm Beach Photographic Center Museum, Florida
Spectrum Gallery, Rochester, NY
The Leica Gallery, Paris
2010
Leica Gallery, Solms, Germany
Red Shirley Screening at the Marfa Film Festival, TX
Ross Art Museum, Ohio Wesleyan University
Photo4, Paris, France
Gallery SEE+, Beijing
2009
Art Gallery of Windsor, Ontario, Canada
Arca Arte, Vercelli, Italia
Photo 4, Paris
Fahey / Klein Gallery, Hollywood
2008
The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, TX
The Fototeca in Havana, Cuba
The Moscow Biennale of Photography, Russia
2007
The Helmut Newton Foundation, Berlin
Center for Creative Photograhy, Tucson, AZ
2006
Soka Art Gallery, Beijing, China
Gallerie LWS, Paris
92nd Street YMCA, New York City
Theatre de la Photographie, Nice, France
2005
Galleria d'Arte Moderna, Bologna, Italy
Sun Art Center, Seoul, Korea
University of Kentucky Art Museum, Lexington, KY
2004
The Norton Museum of Art, Palm Beach, Florida
The Hermes Store Gallery, Beverly Hills, CA
The Hermes Store Gallery, New York City, NY
The Ross Museum, Ohio Wesleyan University, Delaware, OH
2003
Moscow House of Photography, Russia
The Drabinsky Gallery, Toronto, Canada
2002
Simon Patrich Gallery, Vancouver, British Columbia
The Benham Gallery, Seattle, Washington
Galerie Aittuares, Paris, France
Galerie Lucie Weil Seligman, Paris, France
2001
Center for Creative Photography, University of Arizona, Tucson
Bjorn Wetterling, Stockholm, Sweeden
2000
Kerava Art Museum, Kereva,Finland
Galerie Lucie Weil Seligman, Paris, France
Michael Hoppen Gallery, London, England
Galerie Bodo Neimann, Berlin, Germany
Galleria Carla Sozzani, Milan, Italy
Michael Hoppen Gallery, London, England
Casino Bellevue, Biarritz, France
1999
Maison Européenne de la Photographie, Paris, France
1998
Museum für Kunst Modern, Frankfurt a.M., Germany
Tower Gallery, Yokohama, Japan
Greenville County Museum of Art, Greenville. S.C.
Galerie Bodo Neiman,Documenta, Basel, Switzerland
Narodni Muzei Zadar, Croatia
Gail Gibson Gallery, Seattle, Washington
Sandra Berler Gallery, Chevy Chase, Maryland
1997
High Museum of Art, Atlanta
Howard Greenberg Gallery, New York
V. Sp√°la Gallery, Prague
1996
Whitney Museum of American Art
Leo Castelli Gallery, New York City
Frankfurt Kunstverhein, Frankfurt, Germany
Leica Gallery, New York City
Joel Soroka Gallery, Aspen
Galeria Forum, Tarragona, Spain
1995
French Cultural Services, New York
Tampa Museum of Art, Florida
Guild Hall Museum, East Hampton, NY
Cantor Art Gallery, Holy Cross University, Worchester, MA
1994
Butler Institute of American Art, Youngstown, OH
25ÉME ANNIVERSAIRE, Les Rencontres D'Arles, France
ART JONCTION, Leo Castelli, Cannes
1993
"L'Aire de Bourgogne," (Catalog) Espace des Arts, Chalon sur Saone, France
"Women," (Catalog) Boca Museum of Art, Boca Raton, FL
"Landscapes," (Catalog) Light Impressions, Rochester, NY
1992
Galerie Antoine Candau, Paris, France
Kunstverein Emmerich, Haus imm Park, Germany
Photography House, Prague
Galerie Sin Titulo, Nice
PICTURES OF PEACE, Louise Jones Brown Gallery, Duke University, NC
1991
Castelli Graphics, New York
Galerie Municipal du Chateau d'Eau, Toulouse, France
Espace Photo, Paris Audiovisuel, Paris
Galerie Eric Van De Wege, Brussels
I.C.A.C./ Weston Gallery, Tokyo
VIsion Gallery, San Francisco
Oklahoma City Art Museum
Galleria Arco D'Alibert, Roma
Princessehof Musuem, Leuwardern, Holland
Les Chiroux, Musee Liege, Belgium
Leica U.S.A., Northvale, New Jersey
1990
Musee Nicephore Niepce, Calon Sur Soane, France
Albin O. Kuhn Library and Gallery, University of Maryland, Baltimore
Colegio Oficial de Arquitectos de Canarias (COAC), Tenerife, Canray Islands
Quatrieme Triennale Internationle de la Photographie, Musee de la
Photographie, Charleroi, Belgium
Boyage en Riberac, Espace Culturel de l"Ancienne Eglise, Notre Dame, Tiberac, France
Drew University Art Gallery, Madison, New Jersey
Galeria Valentim de Carvalho, Lisbon
Visor-Centre Fotografic, Valencia, Spain
1989
Galerie Fiolet, Amsterdam
The Arts Club of Chicago
Galleria Spectrum, Saragosa. Spain
Moderna Museet, Fotografiska Museet, Stockholm
1988
The Photographer's Gallery, London
Galerie Rene Metras, Barcelona
Bibliotheque Nationale, Paris
Amical Laique, Carcassonne, France
Minneapolis Institue of the Arts
Galerie Agathe Galliard, Paris
Municipal Exhibition Hall, Pamplona, Spain
7éme Recontres Photographique in Bretagne, Villa Margaret, Lorient, France
Galerie Nei Liicht, Dudelange, Luxembourg
Encontros de Fotografia, Coimbra, Portugal
1987
Villa Medici, Rome
Leo Castelli Gallery, New York
International Center of Photography, New York
Circulo de Bellas Artes, Madrid
Museo Archivi Alinari, Florence
Galerie des Kunstveriens, Heinsberg, West Germany
Spectrum Gallery, Light Impressions, Rochester, New York
USIS Cultural Center, Cairo
Museum of Fine Arts, Alexandria
Sandra Berler Gallery, Chevy Chase, Maryland
Hellenic Center of Photography, Athens
FNAC, Lyon, France
Fotografie Forum, Frankfurt, West Germany
Olympus Gallery, Amsterdam
Centre Bourse, Marseilles
Alliance Francaise, New York
Photo Art Basel, Switerland
FNAC, Belgium
FNAC, Nice
FNAC, Marseilles
FNAC, Toulouse
1986
Musee Carnavalet, Paris
American Cultural Center, Brussels
Galeria Forum, Tarragon, Spain
Galerie FNAC, Paris
National Exhibit Hall, Moabane, Swaziland
Ministry of Culture Hall, Marrakech, Morocco
USIS Cultural Center, Rabat, Morocco
USIS Cultural Center, Dakar, Senegal
USIS Cultural Center, Freetown, Sierra Leone
Benteller-Morgan Gallery, Houston, Texas
1985
Leo Castelli Gallery, New York
Galerie Agathe Gaillard, Paris
Castelli Uptown, New York
Bouwfonds Hovelaken, The Netherlands
Consjo Argention de Fotografia, Buenos Aires
1984
Weston Gallery, Carmel, California
1983
Seattle Art Museum
Sun Valley Center for the Arts, Idaho
1982
Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris
Galerie Agathe Galliard, Paris
Castelli Graphics, New York
Shadai Gallery, Tokyo
Olympus Gallery, London
FIAC, Paris
1981
Sprengel Museum, Hanover, West Germany
Cantieri Navali, La Giudeca, Venice
P.P.S. Gallery, Hamburg, West Germany
Mattingly Baker Gallery, Dallas, Texas
Museum Folkwang, Essen, West Germany
Spectro Arts Workshop, Newcastle-Upon-Tyne, England
1980
Castelli Graphics, New York
The Night Gallery, London
Kunstmuseum Dusseldorf, West Germany
Galleria Arco D'Alibert, Rome
The Photography Gallery, Wales
Olympus Show Room, Hamburg, West Germany
1979
Werkstatt Fur Photographie, Berlin
Canon Gallery, Geneva
Grapestake Gallery, San Francisco
ICA Museum of Art, Richmond, Virginia
Galerie Pennings, Eindhoven, The Netherlands
Nouvelle Images, The Hague
1978
Robert Self Gallery, London
Castelli Graphics, New York
Center for Creative Photography, Tucson, Arizona
Camera Obscura, Stockholm
Photographers Gallery, Melbourne
Galerie Fiolet, Amsterdam
Museum of Modern Art, Brisbane
Galerie Givudan, Geneva
Nexus Gallery, Atlanta
1977
Van Reekum Galerij Museum, Apeldoorn, The Netherlands
Galerie Agathe Gaillard, Paris
Fotografiska Museet, Stockholm
CEPA Gallery, Buffalo, New York
Silver Image Gallery, Seattle
Musuem of Modern Art, Oxford, England
Side Gallery, Newcastle, England
1976
Photographers Gallery, Melbourne
Galerie Breiting, Berlin
Castelli Graphics, New York
University of Guelph, Guelph, Canada
Baltimore Museum of Art, Maryland
Focus Gallery, San Francisco
Light Impressions, Rochester, New York
Galerie Fiolet, Amsterdam
The Silver Image, Tacoma, Washington
Texas Center for Photographic Studies, Dallas
Columbia College, Chicago
Photogenesis, Columbus, Ohio
Galerie Jean Deiuzaide, Toulouse, France
1975
Hoesch Museum, Duren, West Germany
Galerie Agathe Gaillard, Paris
Madison Arts Center, Wisconsin
Broxton Gallery, West Los Angeles
