About
Founded in 1947, the George Eastman Museum is the world’s oldest photography museum and one of the largest film archives in the United States, located on the historic Rochester estate of entrepreneur and philanthropist George Eastman, the pioneer of popular photography. Its holdings comprise more than 450,000 photographs; 28,000 motion picture films; the world’s preeminent collection of photographic and cinematographic technology; one of the leading libraries of books related to photography and cinema; and extensive holdings of documents and other objects related to George Eastman. As a research and teaching institution, the Eastman Museum has an active publishing program and makes critical contributions in the fields of film preservation and photographic conservation.
Current Press Releases
George Eastman Museum restoration project Murder in Harlem (1935) selected for screening at 2021 Cannes Film Festival
Rochester, N.Y., July 2, 2021—The George Eastman Museum announced that its recent restoration of Murder in Harlem (1935), a rare film directed by Oscar Micheaux (1884–1951), has been selected to be screened in the Cannes Classic series at the 74th Annual Cannes Film Festival (Festival de Cannes) in France. The festival will be held from Tuesday, July 6, through Saturday, July 17, 2021. The Eastman Museum collaborated with the Cineteca di Bologna, in Italy, to preserve the film.
George Eastman Museum to present two Free Film Series in Solidarity with Black Americans and Asian/Pacific Islander Americans
Rochester, N.Y., June 18, 2021—This summer, the George Eastman Museum will present two free film series in solidarity with Black Americans and Asian/Pacific Islander Americans: Spotlighting Black Film Artists and Celebrating Asian/Pacific American Directors. All are invited to attend the screenings at the Dryden Theatre.
Joshua Rashaad McFadden photography exhibition to open in Fall 2021 at the George Eastman Museum
Rochester, N.Y., May 12, 2021—The George Eastman Museum will open the major new exhibition Joshua Rashaad McFadden: I Believe I’ll Run On in its main galleries on Friday, November 5, 2021. The exhibition is an early-career survey of the Rochester-based artist’s work, in which McFadden critically examines the racism and anti-Black violence that Black Americans have experienced from slavery to the present.
India Heritage Museum in collaboration with the George Eastman Museum presents "Indian Cinema: A Rochester Connection"
Rochester, N.Y., April 29, 2021—India Heritage Museum will present a new visual arts exhibition, Indian Cinema: A Rochester Connection, beginning Saturday, May 8, and running through Sunday, June 13. This free exhibition includes contemporary Indian film posters provided by the George Eastman Museum and can be viewed at the Vinod and Vinay Luthra India Heritage Center at 2171 Monroe Wayne County Line Road, Macedon, 14502. The exhibit can be visited on Saturdays and Sundays from noon to 5 p.m.
George Eastman Museum will exhibit Jess T. Dugan and Vanessa Fabbre’s work focusing on Transgender Older Adults
Rochester, N.Y., April 23, 2021—The George Eastman Museum will present To Survive on This Shore: Photographs and Interviews with Transgender and Gender Nonconforming Older Adults, a photographic exhibition on view from June 19, 2021 through January 2, 2022. This interdisciplinary project is a collaboration between photographer Jess T. Dugan and social worker Vanessa Fabbre, an associate professor at Washington University in St. Louis whose research focuses on the intersection of LGBTQ issues and aging.
The Dryden Theatre will reopen on April 2
Rochester, N.Y., March 18, 2021—The Dryden Theatre will reopen to the public with a screening of Citizen Kane (Orson Welles, US 1941) on Friday, April 2, followed by Rear Window (Alfred Hitchcock, US 1954) on Saturday, April 3. All films will begin at 7:30 p.m. (doors open at 6:45 p.m.).
Orson Welles’s Too Much Johnson now available online with voice-over commentary and musical accompaniment
Rochester, N.Y., March 11, 2021—One of the landmark projects of the George Eastman Museum’s Moving Image Department was the preservation of Orson Welles’s 1938 comedy, Too Much Johnson. The film, once thought lost, can be viewed at eastman.org/TooMuchJohnson. The digitized version of the film includes new recorded voice-over commentary by Anthony L’Abbate, preservation manager, and Caroline Yeager, associate curator, of the George Eastman Museum.
The George Eastman Museum launches new virtual artist’s talk series
Rochester, N.Y., March 8, 2021—The George Eastman Museum is launching a new series of virtual talks, Future/Present, featuring early- to mid-career photographers and artists who are exploring some of the most pressing issues of our time and pushing the boundaries of image-making and visual culture today. The series will kick off online with visual artist and storyteller Citali Fabián on March 18 at 6 p.m. The event is free for museum members and $10 suggested ticket for non-museum members.
The George Eastman Museum now offering virtual Photographic and Moving Image Process Workshops
Rochester, N.Y., March 1, 2021—The George Eastman Museum has been providing artists, educators, and enthusiasts ways to explore photographic and moving image processes for decades through its on-site Process Workshops. From how to make a tintype to turning digital negatives into prints, these in-person workshops drew people from around the world to learn from the museum’s experts. This year, the Eastman Museum is offering new ways to experience its workshops from wherever you are located.
George Eastman Museum receives 20 reels of rare 35mm nitrate films
Rochester, N.Y., February 24, 2021—The George Eastman Museum has recently received a donation of 20 reels, from 12 identified titles, of rare 35mm nitrate and diacetate film prints from historian John Goodman of Scottsbluff, Nebraska.
The George Eastman Museum receives $65,350 grant award from the National Film Preservation Foundation
Rochester, N.Y., December 3, 2020—The George Eastman Museum recently received a grant award for $65,350 from the National Film Preservation Foundation to preserve three severely endangered nitrate feature films from the museum’s collection. The prints of His Last Race (US 1923), Payroll Pirates (US 1920), and When Betty Bets (US 1917) are likely the only versions of the films that still exist. Due to severe nitrate decomposition in all three films, this is the last chance to save these unique prints.
George Eastman Museum receives Best in Show accolades for David Levinthal: War, Myth, Desire publication
Rochester, N.Y., November 16, 2020—The George Eastman Museum was recently awarded the Frances Smyth-Ravenel Prize in the 29th annual Museum Publications Design Competition, presented by the American Alliance of Museums (AAM). This “Best in Show” honor was given to the museum for its David Levinthal: War, Myth, Desire (2019) publication.
The George Eastman Museum hosts Kota Ezawa for a virtual artist’s talk on October 22
Rochester, N.Y., October 16, 2020—The George Eastman Museum will host a virtual artist’s talk with Kota Ezawa in conversation with Bruce Barnes, Ron and Donna Fielding Director of the George Eastman Museum, on Thursday, October 22 at 6 p.m. The talk is free, and registration via Zoom is required as space is limited.
George Eastman Museum will open new Thomas Tischer Visitor Center on October 10
Rochester, N.Y., October 8, 2020—The George Eastman Museum officially cut the ribbon to open its new Thomas Tischer Visitor Center this morning at a 10 a.m. press conference. The Thomas Tischer Visitor Center includes the ESL Federal Credit Union Pavilion, which will serve as the museum’s new main entrance, located next to the Dryden Theatre.
George Eastman Museum to install monumental Colorama
Rochester, N.Y., October 2, 2020—The George Eastman Museum is installing a reproduction of a Colorama image adjacent to its new Thomas Tischer Visitor Center. The public opening of the Tischer Visitor Center and the Colorama will be on Saturday, October 10.
George Eastman Museum receives $249,517 grant from the Institute for Museum and Library Services
Rochester, N.Y., September 21, 2020—The George Eastman Museum has received a grant award of $249, 517 from the Institute for Museum and Library Services (IMLS) through its Museums for America grant program. This is the largest grant program of IMLS. The Eastman Museum’s initiative to conserve 1,004 South Asian films in its collection was one of 109 projects that received part of the more than $19 million in grants awarded.
Louis S. and Molly B. Wolk Foundation to give $350,000 to the George Eastman Museum’s visitor center project
Rochester, N.Y., September 14, 2020—The Louis S. and Molly B. Wolk Foundation has pledged $350,000 to support the George Eastman Museum’s transformative Thomas Tischer Visitor Center. The Wolk Foundation’s gift will be recognized with the dedication of the largest space in the visitor center as the Wolk Concourse.
George Eastman Museum awarded $135,000 grant from National Endowment for the Humanities
Rochester, N.Y., September 9, 2020—The George Eastman Museum has been awarded $135,000 from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) CARES Act grant program to support essential operations of the museum that have been adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The grant funds will allow the museum to sustain, expand, and institutionalize the museum’s digital programs. The Eastman Museum was one of 317 cultural organizations selected to receive a grant award through this highly competitive program.
Gathering Clouds photography exhibition now on view at the George Eastman Museum
Rochester, N.Y., August 25, 2020—The George Eastman Museum premiered Gathering Clouds: Photographs from the Nineteenth Century and Today on July 26 in the museum’s main galleries. Gathering Clouds illustrates the key role that clouds played in the development and reception of photography from around 1850 to 1920. Bringing cloud photography into the present by way of Alfred Stieglitz’s Equivalents (1923–34), the contemporary works in the exhibition forge new artistic paths while responding in various ways to the history of cloud photography.
George Eastman Museum receives $70,000 in grant awards from Art Bridges
Rochester, N.Y., August 6, 2020—The George Eastman Museum has received two grant awards, of $35,000 each, from Art Bridges. The grant awards are funded through the Bridge Ahead Initiative—a nearly $6 million commitment from Art Bridges to assist its partner museums that have been adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
George Eastman Museum reopening delayed one week due to construction
Rochester, N.Y., July 15, 2020—The George Eastman Museum has announced that the public reopening of the museum has been delayed one week because of construction work on the Thomas Tischer Visitor Center. The museum will now reopen to the public on Sunday, July 26, at 11 a.m. The museum will be open for museum members only on Friday, July 24, and Saturday, July 25, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., before opening to the general public on Sunday, July 26.
George Eastman Museum to reopen on July 19
Rochester, N.Y., July 9, 2020—The George Eastman Museum has announced it will reopen to the public on Sunday, July 19, at 11 a.m. The museum, which has been closed since March 13 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, was unable to open when Phase IV began in the Finger Lakes due to the ongoing construction of the Thomas Tischer Visitor Center. The museum will be open for museum members only on Friday, July 17, and Saturday, July 18, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., before opening to the general public on Sunday, July 19.
Take a Bike Tour of George Eastman’s Rochester
Rochester, N.Y., June 24, 2020—The George Eastman Museum has announced that it will begin its series of George Eastman Bike Tours on Saturday, July 18 at 10 a.m. The two-hour tour is led by Jesse Peers, archivist in the George Eastman Legacy Collection and certified bike educator. Peers will guide participants on the relaxed pace, 6.5-mile tour that begins and ends at the Eastman Museum.
The George Eastman Museum continues at-home programming with new virtual offerings
Rochester, N.Y., June 16, 2020—The George Eastman Museum is continuing to expand its online offerings through Eastman Museum at Home. The museum is working with Yelp Rochester to offer new virtual programs from baking to crafting, the events will be held on June 18 and June 30 through Yelp Rochester online. The museum has also rescheduled its Portrait of Jennie: The Rarest Cinematic Experience of All Time webinar to June 25, and the Curator’s Gallery Talk with Bea Nettles to June 26.
The George Eastman Museum offers a glimpse into the cinematic elements of Portrait of Jennie (1948) on June 4
Rochester, N.Y., May 26, 2020—The George Eastman Museum has announced it will host a virtual discussion on the film Portrait of Jennie (William Dieterle, 1948) on Thursday, June 4 at 1 p.m. with members of its Moving Image Department. The museum’s 6th Nitrate Picture Show was originally scheduled to kick off with a screening of Portrait of Jennie on June 4, 2020, but due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the museum made the decision to postpone the festival to June 3–6, 2021.
Artist Alejandro Cartagena to host virtual Artist Talks in English and Spanish with the George Eastman Museum
Rochester, N.Y., May 14, 2020—The George Eastman Museum has recently announced that the formerly postponed artist’s talks with Alejandro Cartagena (Mexican, b. Dominican Republic, b. 1977), originally scheduled for March 27 and March 28, have been rescheduled as virtual conversations.
The George Eastman Museum to host virtual talk on Eastman’s Historic Gardens on May 15
Rochester, N.Y., May 12, 2020—Following the success of its first two virtual lectures, the George Eastman Museum has announced a third lecture on Friday, May 15 at 1 p.m. (EST). The free Focus 45 talk will center on George Eastman’s historic gardens, and will be led by Kathy Connor, Curator of the George Eastman Legacy Collection at the George Eastman Museum.
The George Eastman Museum postpones the 6th Nitrate Picture Show
Rochester, N.Y., April 8, 2020—The George Eastman Museum is postponing the 6th Nitrate Picture Show, originally scheduled for June 4–7, 2020, until June 3–6, 2021. Given the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the museum has decided not to present the film festival in this calendar year. More than 80 percent of current festival passholders would need to travel to Rochester from across the country or overseas, making their attendance inadvisable and nearly impossible in the current environment.
The George Eastman Museum enhances online offerings with Eastman Museum at Home
Rochester, N.Y., April 1, 2020—The George Eastman Museum may be temporarily closed, but the museum is still offering its audiences around the world an opportunity to explore collections and educational offerings. The museum officially launched Eastman Museum at Home, a repository for activities, online resources, tutorials, and tours to keep people engaged in learning about photography, film, and the legacy of George Eastman.
The George Eastman Museum is closed to public temporarily
Rochester, N.Y., March 13, 2020—The George Eastman Museum is committed to the health and safety of our staff, volunteers, and visitors, and to taking all necessary steps to help prevent the spread of COVID-19. In light of the declaration of a national emergency, and after consultation with other cultural leaders in the Rochester region, the George Eastman Museum has temporarily closed to the public as of 5 p.m. today, March 13, 2020, until further notice.
One Hundred Years Ago: George Eastman in 1920 display now on view at the George Eastman Museum
Rochester, N.Y., February 28, 2020—One hundred years ago, George Eastman was entering what would be his final full decade—and his most productive as well. The George Eastman Museum has recently opened One Hundred Years Ago: George Eastman in 1920, a display exploring aspects of Eastman's life through artifacts. Objects on view include an album of photographs from the construction of the Eastman Theatre, newspaper articles, the first issues of Kodak Magazine, and souvenirs from his trip to Japan.
The Dryden Theatre announces call for entries for Stephen King’s Dollar Babies programs
Rochester, N.Y., February 26, 2020—The Dryden Theatre at the George Eastman Museum has announced a call for entries to its 2nd Annual Stephen King’s Dollar Babies short film program. Submissions of original short films are being accepted now through April 30. The selection committee will choose up to 14 short films to screen at the Dryden in October as part of the Dollar Babies programs. Filmmakers will be notified by May 31 if their entry was chosen.
The Nitrate Picture Show will open with 'Portrait of Jennie' (1948) on Thursday, June 4
Rochester, N.Y., February 19, 2020—The George Eastman Museum recently announced that Portrait of Jennie (William Dieterle, 1948) will screen on Thursday, June 4 at 7:30 p.m. to kick off the 6th Nitrate Picture Show. Traditionally, the Nitrate Picture Show has kept all of the film titles a secret until the first day of the festival.
George Eastman’s historic mansion will reopen with the 26th Annual Dutch Connection display on February 14
Rochester, N.Y., January 13, 2020—The historic mansion at the George Eastman Museum will reopen to the public on Friday, February 14, with its Dutch Connection floral show. The annual display is a welcome treat in the midst of winter, with thousands of tulips, hyacinths, daffodils, amaryllis, freesias, and spring annuals in various vibrant shades filling areas of George Eastman’s historic mansion. Tropical orchids courtesy of the Genesee Region Orchid Society will also be on display throughout the mansion.
Alejandro Cartagena: Photo Structure / Foto Estructura will open at the George Eastman Museum on January 31
Rochester, N.Y., January 9, 2020—The George Eastman Museum has announced a new photography exhibition, Alejandro Cartagena: Photo Structure / Foto Estructura, which will open on January 31, 2020, in the museum’s Project Gallery. Co-organized by the George Eastman Museum and the Chrysler Museum of Art, the exhibition will present the latest work, including several new pieces, by artist Alejandro Cartagena (Mexican, b. Dominican Republic, b. 1977). The exhibition and its accompanying audio tour will be presented in both English and Spanish.
George Eastman Museum breaks ground on Thomas Tischer Visitor Center and ESL Federal Credit Union Pavilion
Rochester, N.Y., January 6, 2020—The George Eastman Museum broke ground today on the Thomas Tischer Visitor Center, including construction of the ESL Federal Credit Union Pavilion, which will serve as the museum’s new main entrance, located next to the Dryden Theatre. Through the new entrance, visitors will be served by a new admissions desk, gathering places, a renovated education and meeting hall, a more mission-focused shop, and a relocated café that includes seating in the historic Palm House. The project is expected to be completed by July 2020.
George Eastman Museum receives a $600,000 grant for the restoration of its historic garden structures
Rochester, N.Y., December 23, 2019—The George Eastman Museum has received a grant award of $600,000 for the restoration of the museum’s historic garden structures from the New York State Office for Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation through Title 9 of the Environmental Protection Act of 1993, in conjunction with the Finger Lakes Regional Economic Development Council. The restored structures on George Eastman’s estate, a National Historic Landmark, will include the pergola in the Schuyler C.
George Eastman Museum completes environmental improvements to preserve its world-class photography and technology collections
Rochester, N.Y., December 10, 2019—The George Eastman Museum recently completed a major upgrade to the crucial environmental conditions of its collection storage areas. The Environmental Improvements Implementation Project, at a total cost of $1,246,000, included the replacement and upgrade of 30-year-old systems that controlled the temperature and humidity for the photography vault, technology vault, and photography study center.
The George Eastman Museum presents the 6th Nitrate Picture Show from June 4-7, 2020
Rochester, N.Y., December 10, 2019—The George Eastman Museum will present the 6th Nitrate Picture Show from June 4 to 7, 2020 at the Dryden Theatre in Rochester, NY. The Nitrate Picture Show, the world’s festival of film conservation, will celebrate its 6th year with a new, extended lineup of nitrate prints on screen, workshops, and behind-the-scenes tours of the museum and its collection areas.
Make your own 35mm film and try your hand at Spirit Photography at the George Eastman Museum
Rochester, N.Y., December 3, 2019—The George Eastman Museum has announced its 2020 schedule of photography workshops. The museum is offering 19 hands-on workshops next year, including three brand-new offerings, including Handmade 35mm Black-and-White Film in April; Salt, Albumen, Collodion Printing Out Processes in July; and Lippmann Color Plates in August (Sold out; waitlist only). Registration is now open for all 2020 workshops at eastman.org/workshops.