Ryerson Alumni - Winter 2013 - (Page 16)

“an archive is not a staid collection of images, but rather a dynamic entity filled with discovery and constant activity.” — doina popescu, diRectoR of RyeRson image centRe Despite the increasingly valuable photography collection, and the advanced level of academic study, for the first 30 years of its existence, much of the collection was still kept in a small space in the basement with a regular HVAC system and was presided over by a staff of one: Peter Higdon. “As the collection grew in scope and significance, we knew we had to find a better space for it,” says Snyder. Then the Black Star Collection was gifted to Ryerson, along with seven million dollars to create a research centre and gallery space for its housing and exhibition. Ryerson alumnus and internationally recognized gallerist Stephen Bulger recommended Ryerson to the collection owner. “The Ryerson Image Centre is perfectly suited to fully realize the potential of the collection through exhibitions and serious research,” Bulger says. This past fall, the RIC opened the doors of its new Diamond Schmitt Architects-designed structure, a glowing light-box housing the prized Black Star Collection, other historic photography and nearly 4,500 square feet of exhibition space, including the 16-foot Salah J. Bachir New Media Wall, a central gallery and an area reserved for student works. After many years, Ryerson finally has its world-class photography museum – the first of its kind at a Canadian university. * * * Students were eager to work with the new Black Star Collection. One of these, Sara Manco, is a history buff with a penchant for photojournalism. She saw in the collection a perfect blend of her two big passions. “I had this amazing collection right at my fingertips,” she says. As a master’s student in Ryerson’s Photographic Preservation and Collections Management program, Manco was able to delve into the collection. Not long before she arrived at Ryerson in 2010, the son of one of Black Star’s most prolific photographers, Werner Wolff, had donated his father’s personal archive to the university, (his body of work was already included in the collection). But while the Black Star archive had been inventoried and organized, the 30-odd photo boxes that made up Wolff’s private collection had not. It was a clutter of contact sheets, negatives, handwritten notes, tear sheets and passports from his long photography career. And the subject matter varied drastically – from a roll of film showing images of Dictaphones to pictures of Hitler’s hideout in the Alps. Manco set out to organize it all as her applied thesis project, and she relished the endeavour. “The most exciting part for me was not knowing what I was going to find next,” she says. “It was a total jumble, and nobody knew what was there. Not even his son.” Instead of learning collection management by working through simulated school projects, Manco learned by organizing a valuable archive that is now part of Ryerson’s world-class photography museum and research facility. Along with her fellow students, many of whom carried out their graduate theses at the George Eastman House International Museum of Photography and Film in Rochester, New York, or the Art Gallery of Ontario, Manco’s studies launched her into professional archival work. Not only did she catalogue all the photos and related materials – Wolff had taken about 2,000 of the Black Star photos – she also researched everything she could about him. She discovered that although he had worked as a war photographer in the Second World War, travelled with Dwight D. Eisenhower, Lyndon B. Johnson and John F. Kennedy, and was highly regarded within the agency and lauded for his technical skills, he had not achieved the fame of other photojournalists of the time. She believes this archive will give his photographs new life, which is precisely what the RIC is determined to cultivate. “An archive is not a staid collection of images,” says the centre's director Doina Popescu, “but rather a dynamic entity filled with discovery and constant activity. It offers a wealth of documentation available for investigation, education and exhibition – an opportunity for sleuthing and for artistic expression.” The Black Star Collection brings image art scholarship at Ryerson to another level. A destination for academic research and teaching, the RIC is also an exhibition gallery featuring photography, installation art, film and new media. Through joint exhibits and other collaborative projects, the centre is engaging in an interdisciplinary conversation across the Ryerson campus, within Toronto’s art scene and internationally. * * * More than 300 Black Star photographs will be on display in January at the RIC’s Human Rights, Human Wrongs exhibition by London-based guest curator Mark Sealy. “He wanted the viewers to feel the immensity of the collection,” says RIC Exhibitions Curator Gaëlle Morel. “He wants them to be overwhelmed.” Morel works with a variety of guest curators to find original ways of engaging the photography. “They know how to handle such a collection, because it can be very intimidating 16 Ryerson University Magazine • W I N T E R 2013

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Ryerson Alumni - Winter 2013

Ryerson Alumni - Winter 2013
Table of Contents
President's Message
Showcase
Gould Street
Picture Perfect
Photo Essay
Feels Like Home
From the boardroom to the delivery room – midwife Jasmin Tecson follows her passion
Flying with the Snowbirds – Capt. Iain Cummings realizes lifelong dream
Alumni Diary/VP Viewpoint
Class Notes
Remember When?

Ryerson Alumni - Winter 2013