“Vivian Maier: In Color” Opens to the Public Monday, June 26
Lubeznik Center for the Arts (LCA) is featuring a collection of works by world-renown photographer Vivian Maier in an upcoming exhibition, Vivian Maier: In Color, on display from June 26 through October 21, 2023.
Vivian Maier was more than a nanny photographer. She toed the line between a French immigrant and a local, a suburban nanny and a city dweller and a subject and an object who was only posthumously celebrated with international acclaim.
A discerning amateur photographer, Maier took thousands of pictures throughout her life, refining her craft through her explorations around Chicago, her home base from 1956 on. She gained in-depth perspective of the diverse city and its people. She took everyday moments and transformed them into something extraordinary. Maier’s photographs encourage viewers to look beyond the ordinary. She approached her subjects with an unwavering confidence that portrayed them in a similar light, revealing their parallels, intersections and tensions.
Maier died in 2009 before her life’s work was shared with the world. She left behind hundreds of prints, 100,000 negatives and about a thousand rolls of undeveloped film, which were discovered when a collector purchased the contents of her storage lockers. There is no proof she ever made a concerted effort to show her work―gifting us the mystery of an elusive woman behind the camera.
“We are so pleased to bring this exhibition to our community. Vivian Maier was a very talented photographer, known mostly for being a street photographer. She documents life in Chicago during the 1960s and 70s, often presenting a racially divided city. Her photographs are extraordinary in documenting a specific moment in time that still feels fresh. She remained unknown in her lifetime, but that’s the same story of most women in the arts up until very recently,” said Janet Bloch, LCA’s executive director.
Centered on the Chicago History Museum’s (CHM) new Vivian Maier collection donated by art collector Jeffrey Goldstein, Vivian Maier: In Color features 50 color prints spanning the late 1950s through the 1970s. Many of the works loaned to LCA will be on display for the first time outside of CHM.
Free, public events taking place during the run of Vivian Maier: In Color include:
- Opening Reception on Friday, July 7 from 5-8 p.m. (Central)
- Director’s Gallery Talk on Saturday, July 15 at 11:30 a.m.
- Vivian Maier: A Photographer’s Life and Afterlife on Sunday, July 30 at 5 p.m.
- Lubeznik Arts Festival Free Day on Sunday, August 20 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
- Family Day on Saturday, October 14 from 1-3 p.m.
Free gallery tours are available for small groups and organizations. To schedule a docent-led tour, contact Janet Bloch at jbloch@lubeznikcenter.org. To schedule a children's tour, contact Nelsy Marcano at nmarcano@lubeznikcenter.org.
Vivian Maier: In Color at LCA was organized by the Chicago History Museum and sponsored by Aon.
Photographs by Natasha Moustache and a film by zakkiyyah najeebah dumas o’neal will also be on display at LCA during the run of Vivian Maier: In Color.
