Chuck Close, Self-Portrait, 2004; Daguerreotype; 8-1/2 x 6-1/2”; © Chuck Close in association with Jerry Spagnoli, courtesy Pace Gallery
 

Chuck Close is one of the most important figures in contemporary art, renowned for more than five decades for his portrait paintings. At the same time he has investigated, experimented and explored another subject with equal virtuosity: photography. Chuck Close Photographs is a comprehensive survey of significant scope, exploring how the artist has stretched the boundaries of photographic means, methods, and approaches throughout his career.  It includes 129 photographs spanning from 1968 to the present, ranging from black and white portraits to monumentally scaled composite Polaroids, to intimately scaled daguerreotypes. For the first time in his extensive exhibition history, this project delves deeply into the full range of his photographic works.

While a member of the UMass Amherst Art Department, Chuck Close's very first solo exhibition was held here in 1967. Although he taught at UMass Amherst for a short period of time, his impact and influence were widely felt among students and faculty. He was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of the Arts by the University of Massachusetts Amherst in 1995.

The exhibition is co-organized by Terrie Sultan, Director of the Parrish Art Museum, Long Island, NY, and Colin Westerbeck,  an internationally acclaimed author, independent curator, and former curator of photography at the Art Institute of Chicago. The exhibition is accompanied by an illustrated book published by Prestel, with essays by Colin Westerbeck and Terrie Sultan.