Hugh Edwards (1903–1986) was an American curator of photography, based in Chicago, Illinois at the

Art Institute of Chicago The Art Institute of Chicago in Chicago's Grant Park, founded in 1879, is one of the oldest and largest art museums in the world. Recognized for its curatorial efforts and popularity among visitors, the museum hosts approximately 1.5 mill ...

during the 1960s. Considered highly influential, Edwards was one of a handful of key curators, along with

Alfred Stieglitz Alfred Stieglitz (January 1, 1864 – July 13, 1946) was an American photographer and modern art promoter who was instrumental over his 50-year career in making photography an accepted art form. In addition to his photography, Stieglitz was kno ...

, Edward Steichen and John Szarkowski, who worked to gain the acceptance in the United States of fine art photography and documentary photography as art forms.

Early life and education

Hugh Logan Edwards Jr was born as the only child of his parents in the river city of Paducah, Kentucky, at the confluence of the Tennessee and Ohio rivers.David Travis, "Hugh Edwards: A Gentleman from Kentucky"
Art Institute of Chicago, 2017 His family was deeply attached to the rivers of the American South: his father was an engineer on a steamboat and his grandfather was a river pilot. A great uncle had fought on the Confederate side of the Civil War, taking a family slave to act as valet, and fighting in the

Battle of Shiloh The Battle of Shiloh (also known as the Battle of Pittsburg Landing) was fought on April 6–7, 1862, in the American Civil War. The fighting took place in southwestern Tennessee, which was part of the war's Western Theater. The battlefield i ...

. Although Edwards did not have formal education beyond high school, he became a highly cultured, self-taught man who was fluent in French and Italian, the better to read literature of those countries in the original languages. He became known for his love of music and collection of American and European literature.

Career

Edwards's first job after high school was as a librarian in Paducah at the McCracken County Public Library. His parents encouraged him to continue his study of piano and he moved to Chicago, which opened a larger world to him. He became an assistant at the

. In 1959, he was appointed as Curator of Prints & Drawings, serving until 1970. He was responsible for the significant collection of photographs there and expanded the collection, acquiring some three thousand prints. He also organized seventy-five shows during his time at the Art Institute.Elizabeth Siegel, "The Photographer's Curator" (Hugh Edwards)
Art Institute of Chicago, 2017 In many cases, Edwards led the Art Institute to be the first museum to offer a solo show to young photographers who later became important in the field, such as

Robert Frank Robert Frank (November 9, 1924 – September 9, 2019) was a Swiss photographer and documentary filmmaker, who became an American binational. His most notable work, the 1958 book titled ''The Americans'', earned Frank comparisons to a modern-da ...

, Raymond Moore, and others. Edwards struggled to curate in the small, cramped gallery space and without the financial resources to produce accompanying exhibition catalogs. Shy and retiring, and without a college education, Edwards did not become a public champion of photography and rarely wrote about it beyond reviewing. But in the years before the art world's acceptance of photography, Edwards offered vital support and encouragement to many emerging photographers, including Jan Saudek, Duane Michals, Algimantas Kezys, Danny Lyon and others. According to Lyon, "Edwards ushered in what is known as the Golden Age of Chicago Photography. He expressed himself mostly in conversation and through the photographers he chose to exhibit."Danny Lyon, "Hugh Edwards: Curator, Mentor, Friend"
''New York Books Daily'', 11 November 2017 Edwards was also a practicing photographer; during the 1950s he worked on a decade-long project to document the people of a roller rink in Harvey, Illinois. He ceased photographing in 1961. When asked why he no longer photographed, he responded, " 'Why should I?' Hugh answered. 'Other people take them for me'.”

References

External links

Portfolio of Edwards' 1950s work
Bleak Beauty website (Danny Lyon) {{DEFAULTSORT:Edwards, Hugh 20th-century American photographers American art curators Photography curators 1903 births 1986 deaths