World Financial Center Courtyard Gallery
Brookfield Financial Properties
Profile
MISSION
The International Center of Photography is a museum, a school and a center for photographs and photography. ICP's mission is to present photography's vital and central place in contemporary culture, and to lead in interpretation of issues central to its development.
HISTORY
Since its founding in 1974 by Cornell Capa in the historic Straight House on Fifth Avenue's Museum Mile, ICP has presented over 450 exhibitions, bringing the work of more than 2,500 photographers and other artists to the public in one-person and group exhibitions. ICP was founded as an institution to keep the legacy of 'Concerned Photography' alive. After the untimely deaths of his brother, Robert Capa, and colleagues Werner Bischof and David "Chim" Seymour in the mid 1950s, Capa saw the need to keep their humanitarian documentary work relevant and visible to the public eye. After a long search, he found 1130 Fifth Avenue and made it the Center's home.
THE LANDMARK MANSION
The Straight House was completed in 1915 for the family of Willard Straight, which lived in the Georgian mansion until 1927. The house passed through several private hands before becoming the home of the Audubon Society in 1953. After ICP's tenure, the house returns to individual ownership and will be renovated as a private home.
Since its beginnings, enormous growth has occurred in every aspect of the institution including exhibitions, collections, education programs and staff. In 1989, a satellite facility, ICP Midtown, was created to help accommodate this growth. Over the years, as ICP continued to grow, it became clear that further expansion was not possible in the Uptown location and plans were made for the major redesign and reconstruction of the Midtown location to meet the challenges of the flourishing museum, educational and community programs. In the fall of 1999, the headquarters building at 1130 Fifth Avenue was sold.
REDESIGN AND RECONSTRUCTION
The newly expanded galleries, located at 1133 Avenue of the Americas at 43rd Street, were designed by Gwathmey Siegel & Associates Architects for the display of photography and new media with state-of-the-art lighting, climate control systems and digital presentation systems. The reopening of the 17,000 square foot site marked the first major exhibition from ICP's collection and inauguration of ICP's New Art for Web and Wall Series featuring multimedia exhibitions. The new facility more than doubles the previous exhibition space and becomes the new headquarters for ICP's public exhibitions programs.
The International Center of Photography is a museum, a school and a center for photographs and photography. ICP's mission is to present photography's vital and central place in contemporary culture, and to lead in interpretation of issues central to its development.
HISTORY
Since its founding in 1974 by Cornell Capa in the historic Straight House on Fifth Avenue's Museum Mile, ICP has presented over 450 exhibitions, bringing the work of more than 2,500 photographers and other artists to the public in one-person and group exhibitions. ICP was founded as an institution to keep the legacy of 'Concerned Photography' alive. After the untimely deaths of his brother, Robert Capa, and colleagues Werner Bischof and David "Chim" Seymour in the mid 1950s, Capa saw the need to keep their humanitarian documentary work relevant and visible to the public eye. After a long search, he found 1130 Fifth Avenue and made it the Center's home.
THE LANDMARK MANSION
The Straight House was completed in 1915 for the family of Willard Straight, which lived in the Georgian mansion until 1927. The house passed through several private hands before becoming the home of the Audubon Society in 1953. After ICP's tenure, the house returns to individual ownership and will be renovated as a private home.
Since its beginnings, enormous growth has occurred in every aspect of the institution including exhibitions, collections, education programs and staff. In 1989, a satellite facility, ICP Midtown, was created to help accommodate this growth. Over the years, as ICP continued to grow, it became clear that further expansion was not possible in the Uptown location and plans were made for the major redesign and reconstruction of the Midtown location to meet the challenges of the flourishing museum, educational and community programs. In the fall of 1999, the headquarters building at 1130 Fifth Avenue was sold.
REDESIGN AND RECONSTRUCTION
The newly expanded galleries, located at 1133 Avenue of the Americas at 43rd Street, were designed by Gwathmey Siegel & Associates Architects for the display of photography and new media with state-of-the-art lighting, climate control systems and digital presentation systems. The reopening of the 17,000 square foot site marked the first major exhibition from ICP's collection and inauguration of ICP's New Art for Web and Wall Series featuring multimedia exhibitions. The new facility more than doubles the previous exhibition space and becomes the new headquarters for ICP's public exhibitions programs.
