Geoffrey Lea Winningham (born March 4, 1943) is an American photographer, journalist, and filmmaker best known for his photographs and documentary films focusing on Texas and Mexican culture. Geoff's work was first recognized in the early 1970s when he published the book Friday Night in the Coliseum, featuring his photographs of professional wrestling and recorded conversations with wrestlers and fans. The book was followed in 1972 by a 16mm, black and white documentary film of the same title.
Over the course of his career he has received two
Guggenheim Fellowship
Guggenheim Fellowships are grants that have been awarded annually since by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation to those "who have demonstrated exceptional capacity for productive scholarship or exceptional creative ability in the ar ...
s, five grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, and numerous commissions. He has lived in Houston, Texas, and taught photography in the Department of Visual and Dramatic Arts at Rice University since 1969. In addition, he directs the Pozos Art Project, Inc., a non-profit enterprise offering art and photography opportunities to children in Texas and in Mexico.
Early life and education
Geoff Winningham was born on March 4, 1943, in
Jackson, Tennessee
Jackson is a city in and the county seat of Madison County, Tennessee, United States. Located east of Memphis, Tennessee, Memphis, it is a regional center of trade for West Tennessee. Its total population was 68,205 as of the 2020 United States ...
. At the age of 13, he became fascinated with cameras, immersed himself in photography, found a part-time job as a studio and darkroom assistant, built a darkroom in his family home, and made his first photo-book, a handmade volume of portraits of his friends. At the age of 14, he left home to continue his secondary education as a boarding student at
Battle Ground Academy
Battle Ground Academy (BGA) is an independent college-preparatory school for grades K-12. BGA is located in Franklin, Tennessee, US. Founded in 1889, the school was originally located in part on the site of the Battle of Franklin in the America ...
in
Franklin, Tennessee
Franklin is a city in and county seat of Williamson County, Tennessee, United States. About south of Nashville, it is one of the principal cities of the Nashville metropolitan area and Middle Tennessee. As of 2020, its population was 83,454 ...
.
In 1961 he moved to
Houston, Texas
Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...
, to study at
Rice University
William Marsh Rice University (Rice University) is a Private university, private research university in Houston, Houston, Texas. It is on a 300-acre campus near the Houston Museum District and adjacent to the Texas Medical Center. Rice is ranke ...
, majoring in
English literature
English literature is literature written in the English language from United Kingdom, its crown dependencies, the Republic of Ireland, the United States, and the countries of the former British Empire. ''The Encyclopaedia Britannica'' defines E ...
. While studying at Rice he renewed his interest in photography, encouraged by several English professors, most notably Professor Gerald O'Grady, his first and most important mentor. After earning his bachelor's degree from Rice, he entered the Master's program at the
IIT Institute of Design
Institute of Design (ID) at the Illinois Institute of Technology (Illinois Tech), founded as the New Bauhaus, is a graduate school teaching systemic, human-centered design.
History
The Institute of Design at Illinois Tech is a school of design ...
in
Chicago, Illinois
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
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, where he studied with
Aaron Siskind
Aaron Siskind (December 4, 1903 – February 8, 1991) was an American photographer whose work focuses on the details of things, presented as flat surfaces to create a new image independent of the original subject. He was closely involved with, if ...
,
Arthur Siegel
Arthur Siegel (December 31, 1923 - September 13, 1994) was an American songwriter.
Born on December 31, 1923, in Lakewood Township, New Jersey, he grew up in Asbury Park, New Jersey. Siegel studied acting at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts ...
, and
Wynn Bullock
Wynn Bullock (April 18, 1902 – November 16, 1975) was an American photographer whose work is included in over 90 major museum collections around the world. He received substantial critical acclaim during his lifetime, published numerous books an ...
, completing his MS degree in 1968.
Books
* ''In the Eyes of Our Children: Houston, An American City'', Houston: Pozos Art Project, 2017.
* ''Of the Soil: Photographs of Vernacular Architecture and Stories of Changing Times in Arkansas,'' Fayetteville, AR:
University of Arkansas Press
The University of Arkansas Press is a university press that is part of the University of Arkansas and has been a member of the Association of University Presses since 1984. Its mission is to publish peer-reviewed books and academic journals. It wa ...
, 2014.
* ''Going Back to Galveston: Nature, Funk and Fantasy in a Favorite Place'', College Station, TX:
Texas A&M University Press
Texas A&M University Press (also known informally as TAMU Press) is a scholarly publishing house associated with Texas A&M University. It was founded in 1974 and is located in College Station, Texas, in the United States.
Overview
The Texas A&M ...
, Text by J. Killingsworth, 94 photos. 2011.
* ''Traveling the Shore of the Spanish Sea: The Gulf Coast of Texas and Mexico,'' College Station, TX: Texas A&M University Press, 2010.
* ''The Pozos Art Project: Art from the 2009 Workshops,'' Houston, TX: Pozos Art Project, 2009.
* ''Mi Pueblo: The Pozos Children's Project,'' Houston, TX: The Jung Center of Houston, 2008.
* ''Along Forgotten River,'' Austin, TX:
Texas State Historical Association
The Texas State Historical Association (TSHA) is a non-profit educational organization, dedicated to documenting the history of Texas. It was founded in Austin, Texas, on March 2, 1897. , TSHA moved their offices from Austin to the University of N ...
Richard Rodriguez
Richard Rodriguez (born July 31, 1944) is an American writer who became famous as the author of '' Hunger of Memory: The Education of Richard Rodriguez'' (1982), a narrative about his intellectual development.
Early life
He was born on July 3 ...
, New York, NY: W. W. Norton & Co., 1997.
* ''Rice University: A 75th Anniversary Portrait,'' Houston, TX:
Rice University Press The Rice University Press was a publishing house, a division of Rice University.
Relaunched in 2006 after a ten-year hiatus, the press was noted for its unique all-digital platform. Rice's digital press operated just as a traditional press, up to a ...
, 1987.
* ''A Place of Dreams: Houston, an American City'', Houston, TX: Rice University Press, 1986.
* ''Rites of Fall: High School Football in Texas'', Austin, TX: University of Texas Press,1979.
* ''Geoff Winningham: Photographs,'' Houston, TX: Museum of Fine Arts, 1974.
* ''Going Texan: The Days of the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo'', New York, NY: Horizon Press, 1972.
* ''Friday Night in the Coliseum,'' Houston, TX: Allison Press, 1971.
Films
* ''In Our Fathers' Sweetest Dreams: High School Football in Texas,'' (16 mm, 30 min.), produced with funding from the
Southwest Alternate Media Project
The Southwest Alternate Media Project (SWAMP) is a non profit media arts organization based in Houston, Texas. It was established in 1977.
The Southwest Alternate Media Project was a co-sponsor of Houston Film Critics Society Awards 2010 and has ...
, 1993.
* ''The Pleasures of this Stately Dome,'' (16 mm, 54 min.), produced with funding from the NEA, Public Media Section, 1976.
* ''Friday Night in the Coliseum,'' (16 mm, 35 min.), produced for the
Corporation for Public Broadcasting
The Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) is an American publicly funded non-profit corporation, created in 1967 to promote and help support public broadcasting. The corporation's mission is to ensure universal access to non-commercial, ...
, 1972.
Magazine work
* "The Eye of the Bull," ''
Texas Monthly
''Texas Monthly'' (stylized as ''TexasMonthly'') is a monthly American magazine headquartered in Downtown Austin, Texas. ''Texas Monthly'' was founded in 1973 by Michael R. Levy and has been published by Emmis Publishing, L.P. since 1998 and is ...
'', October 1991.
* "A Fool for Mules," ''Texas Monthly'', May 1991.
* "An Arabian for the Ages," ''
Connoisseur
A connoisseur ( French traditional, pre-1835, spelling of , from Middle-French , then meaning 'to be acquainted with' or 'to know somebody/something') is a person who has a great deal of knowledge about the fine arts; who is a keen appreciator ...
,'' March 1989.
* "My Kind of Town," ''Texas Monthly,'' September 1988.
* "Football: Game of Life," ''Texas Monthly'', October 1983.
* "281," ''Texas Monthly,'' July 1982.
* "Foat Wuth, The Eternal City," ''Texas Monthly,'' June 1982.
* "Houston, Texas: City of Destiny," ''Texas Monthly,'' October 1981.
* "Rites of Fall," ''American Photographer,'' December 1979.
* "Friday Night Heroes," ''Texas Monthly,'' October 1976.
* "Beach Party," ''Texas Monthly,'' August 1976.
* "Our Town," ''Texas Monthly,'' June 1976.
* "An Apology for the Life of Joe H. Klein," ''
Esquire
Esquire (, ; abbreviated Esq.) is usually a courtesy title.
In the United Kingdom, ''esquire'' historically was a title of respect accorded to men of higher social rank, particularly members of the landed gentry above the rank of gentlema ...
,'' December 1973.
* "Mes Nuits Chaudes Dans Le Temple du Catch," ''
Photo
A photograph (also known as a photo, image, or picture) is an image created by light falling on a photosensitive surface, usually photographic film or an electronic image sensor, such as a CCD or a CMOS chip. Most photographs are now created ...
'' (Paris), December 1972.
Exhibitions
*
Dallas Museum of Fine Arts
The Dallas Museum of Art (DMA) is an art museum located in the Arts District of downtown Dallas, Texas, along Woodall Rodgers Freeway between St. Paul and Harwood. In the 1970s, the museum moved from its previous location in Fair Park to the A ...
, 2017.
* Brooklyn Museum of Art, 2017.
*
Butler Center for Arkansas Studies
The mission of the Butler Center for Arkansas Studies (est. 1997) is to promote "a greater understanding and appreciation of Arkansas history, literature, art, and culture." Named after Richard C. Butler Sr., a noted Little Rock lawyer and philan ...
, Little Rock, 2015.
* Brandon Gallery, Houston, 2015.
* Koelsch Gallery, Houston, March–April 2012.
* Robert Anderson Gallery, New York, 2011.
* Wittliff Gallery, Texas State University, 2008.
* Beeville Art Museum, Beeville, Texas, 2005.
* Harrison Museum of Art, Utah State University, Logan, Utah, August–September 2004.
*
Palm Springs Art Museum
The Palm Springs Art Museum (formerly the Palm Springs Desert Museum) was founded in 1938, and is a regional art, natural science and performing arts institution for Palm Springs and the Coachella Valley, in Riverside County, California, United St ...
, Palm Springs, California, 2002.
* Special Collections Gallery, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, 1999.
* Leica Gallery, New York, 1998.
* Duke University, Museum of Art, Durham, 1997.
*
Museo Rufino Tamayo
Museo Rufino Tamayo is a public contemporary art museum located in Mexico City's Chapultepec Park, that produces contemporary art exhibitions, using its collection of modern and contemporary art, as well as artworks from the collection of its fo ...
San Antonio Museum of Art
The San Antonio Museum of Art (SAMA) is an art museum in Downtown San Antonio, Texas, USA. The museum spans 5,000 years of global culture. The museum is housed in the historic former Lone Star Brewery (1886) on the Museum Reach of the San Antonio ...
Madison Art Center
The Madison Museum of Contemporary Art (MMoCA), formerly known as the Madison Art Center, is an independent, non-profit art museum located in downtown Madison, Wisconsin.
MMoCA is dedicated to exhibiting, collecting, and preserving modern and co ...
, Madison, Wisconsin, 1975.
* Witkin Gallery, New York, 1975.
* Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, 1974.
Collections
* Museum of Fine Arts, Houston
*
Museum of Modern Art
The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues.
It plays a major role in developing and collecting modern art, and is often identified as one of ...
, New York,
*
Metropolitan Museum of Art
The Metropolitan Museum of Art of New York City, colloquially "the Met", is the largest art museum in the Americas. Its permanent collection contains over two million works, divided among 17 curatorial departments. The main building at 1000 ...
, New York,
*
San Francisco Museum of Modern Art
The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA) is a modern and contemporary art museum located in San Francisco, California. A nonprofit organization, SFMOMA holds an internationally recognized collection of modern and contemporary art, and was ...
Princeton University Art Museum
The Princeton University Art Museum (PUAM) is the Princeton University gallery of art, located in Princeton, New Jersey. With a collecting history that began in 1755, the museum was formally established in 1882, and now houses over 113,000 works o ...
, Princeton
*
Dallas Museum of Fine Arts
The Dallas Museum of Art (DMA) is an art museum located in the Arts District of downtown Dallas, Texas, along Woodall Rodgers Freeway between St. Paul and Harwood. In the 1970s, the museum moved from its previous location in Fair Park to the A ...
, Dallas
*
San Antonio Museum of Art
The San Antonio Museum of Art (SAMA) is an art museum in Downtown San Antonio, Texas, USA. The museum spans 5,000 years of global culture. The museum is housed in the historic former Lone Star Brewery (1886) on the Museum Reach of the San Antonio ...
, San Antonio
*
Museum of Photographic Arts
The Museum of Photographic Arts (MOPA) is a museum in San Diego's Balboa Park. First founded in 1974, MOPA opened in 1983.Wittliff Collections of Southwestern and Mexican Photography, San Marcos
*
New Orleans Museum of Art
The New Orleans Museum of Art (or NOMA) is the oldest fine arts museum in the city of New Orleans. It is situated within City Park, a short distance from the intersection of Carrollton Avenue and Esplanade Avenue, and near the terminus of the ...
, New Orleans
*
United States Library of Congress
The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The library is ...
, Washington,
*
J. Paul Getty Museum
The J. Paul Getty Museum, commonly referred to as the Getty, is an art museum in Los Angeles, California housed on two campuses: the Getty Center and Getty Villa.
The Getty Center is located in the Brentwood, Los Angeles, Brentwood neighborhood ...
, Los Angeles
Awards and commissions
* Ned Shank Award for Outstanding Preservation Publication, Preserve Arkansas, 2015.
* John Brinkerhoff Jackson Book Prize – Special Recognition for the best book on the American landscape for ''Traveling the Shore of the Spanish Sea'', Foundation for Landscape Studies, 2011.
* Ron Tyler Award for the Best Illustrated Book on Texas History and Culture for ''Traveling the Shore of the Spanish Sea,''
Texas State Historical Association
The Texas State Historical Association (TSHA) is a non-profit educational organization, dedicated to documenting the history of Texas. It was founded in Austin, Texas, on March 2, 1897. , TSHA moved their offices from Austin to the University of N ...
, 2010.
* Urban Investment and Development Company, commission to photograph "Central Houston," 1983–86.
*
National Endowment for the Arts
The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal ...
, Media Arts Grant for a documentary film on Texas high school football, 1983.
* First Federal of Arkansas, commission to photograph "The Vernacular Architecture of Arkansas," 1980–81.
*
John Simon Guggenheim Fellowship
Guggenheim Fellowships are grants that have been awarded annually since by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation to those "who have demonstrated exceptional capacity for productive scholarship or exceptional creative ability in the art ...
, for "Photographs of Texas High School Football," 1978.
* National Endowment for the Arts, Photography Fellowship for "A Photographic Study of Football in Texas," 1977.
* Seagrams Foundation, commission to photograph "County Courthouses of the Southern United States," 1975–76.
*
Kimbell Art Museum
The Kimbell Art Museum in Fort Worth, Texas, hosts an art collection as well as traveling art exhibitions, educational programs and an extensive research library. Its initial artwork came from the private collection of Kay and Velma Kimbell, wh ...
, commission to photograph the Kimbell Museum for the book ''Light is the Theme'', 1975.
* National Endowment for the Arts, Photography Fellowship for "Photographs of Rural Festivals in Texas," 1975.
* National Endowment for the Arts, Public Media Grant for a film on the Houston Astrodome, 1974.
* John Simon Guggenheim Fellowship, for "Photographs of Texas," 1972.
*
Corporation for Public Broadcasting
The Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) is an American publicly funded non-profit corporation, created in 1967 to promote and help support public broadcasting. The corporation's mission is to ensure universal access to non-commercial, ...
, Grant for the film ''Friday Night in the Coliseum'', 1971.