About George Eastman Museum
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, 31,000 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 its L. Jeffrey Selznick School of Film Preservation’s graduate program (a collaboration with the University of Rochester) makes critical contributions to film preservation. The George Eastman Museum is supported with public funds from the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature.
Current Press Releases
George Eastman Museum restoration project Murder in Harlem (1935) selected for screening at 2021 Cannes Film Festival
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
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
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. To this end, McFadden explores how racism, masculinity, sexuality, and gender impact Black Americans, while at the same time he envisions Black life liberated from these strictures.
India Heritage Museum in collaboration with the George Eastman Museum presents "Indian Cinema: A Rochester Connection"
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
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
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
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 online film also includes a new musical score provided by Philip C.
The George Eastman Museum launches new virtual artist’s talk series
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
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
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.
George Eastman House Unveils New Photographic Process Video Series
George Eastman House announced today the official launch of its completed Photographic Process Videos project. The video series was funded by a grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services Museums for America Program. The complete series can be found on the museum's YouTube channel.
The University of Rochester and George Eastman House Announce Joint Master's Degree Program in Photographic Preservation and Collections Management
The University of Rochester and George Eastman House will jointly offer a new master’s degree in Photographic Preservation and Collections Management (PPCM) beginning in the fall of 2014. The program will be the only one in the United States dedicated to the study of the photograph as an object (the care and handling of photographs) as well as the related academic study of images (theoretical and historical context). Enrollment begins this month, with the first students beginning their courses in fall 2014.
George Eastman House receives Museums for America grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services
George Eastman House has received a federal grant for its project, Opening Up Collections: Charting Technicolor’s History through New Technologies, in the amount of $48,254 from the Institute of Museum and Library Services through the Museums for America Program. George Eastman House is one of 186 museums across the nation to be awarded the IMLS grant out of 707 that applied for funding.
George Eastman House receives grant from the Max and Marian Farash Charitable Foundation
George Eastman House has received a $32,000 grant for its History Through the Lens of Photography educational program from the Max and Marian Farash Charitable Foundation—“Engaging the Next Generation” initiative.
George Eastman House receives grant from Rochester Area Community Foundation to support Dawoud Bey: The Birmingham Project exhibition
George Eastman House has received a grant from the Rochester Area Community Foundation in the amount of $40,000 to support the exhibition Dawoud Bey: The Birmingham Project, which opened on Saturday, November 1 and will run through January 25, 2015.
George Eastman House Launches
George Eastman House announced today the launch of The Nitrate Picture Show, the world’s first archival festival of film conservation, showcasing vintage 35mm nitrate film prints made from the beginnings of cinema to the early 1950s. The inaugural edition of The Nitrate Picture Show: A Festival of Film Conservation will be held May 1–3, 2015 at the Dryden Theatre, George Eastman House’s historic venue for film exhibition in Rochester, NY. The Dryden Theatre—one of only a few archival venues in the world that can project nitrate film—is home to the museum’s ongoing program of past and present cinematic works from all countries.
Photographer David Pace and Filmmaker Siegfried Kühn Visit George Eastman House on Thursday, October 23
George Eastman House welcomes two visiting artists on Thursday, October 23—photographer David Pace and filmmaker Siegfried Kühn. Pace will be speaking as part of the museum’s Wish You Were Here lecture series at 6 p.m. in the Dryden Theatre. In a separate event, at 8 p.m., Kühn will be introducing his film Childhood before its screening in the Dryden, followed by a discussion with Eastman School of Music professor, Reinhild Steingröver.
Dawoud Bey: The Birmingham Project Opens at George Eastman House on November 1
Dawoud Bey: The Birmingham Project—organized by the Birmingham Museum of Art—makes its debut at George Eastman House on November 1. Chicago-based photographer Dawoud Bey’s The Birmingham Project is a reflection on the September 15, 1963, bombing of the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama. This event resulted in the deaths of six African American adolescents, some of the youngest victims of the Civil Rights Movement: Addie Mae Collins (14), Denise McNair (11), Carole Robertson (14), and Cynthia Wesley (14), who were in the church at the time of the bombing, and Virgil Ware (13) and Johnny Robinson (16), who lost their lives as a result of the ensuing violence. The exhibition will be on view in the museum’s Project Gallery through January 25, 2015.
George Eastman House opens second installation in History of Photography gallery on Saturday
George Eastman House has dedicated its new History of Photography Gallery to rotating installations that trace photography’s historical path to the present through photographs and cameras from the museum’s collection. The gallery opened in May and the second rotation of photographs from its collection will be on display beginning Saturday, October 4. This installation of photographs was curated but Joe Struble, collection manager in the Department of Photography at George Eastman House.
George Eastman House receives digital laboratory from Eastman Kodak Company
George Eastman House announced today that it will operate a digital laboratory as part of its Moving Image Department, thanks to Eastman Kodak Company’s donation of state-of-the-art digital equipment. The gift will enhance George Eastman House’s in-house capabilities in film preservation, allowing broader access to the museum’s motion picture collection. The lab will be used for both digitizing select titles from the museum’s premier collection of more than 28,000 films, as well as preserving digitally-born works.
George Eastman House receives digital laboratory from Eastman Kodak Company
George Eastman House announced today that it will operate a digital laboratory as part of its Moving Image Department, thanks to Eastman Kodak Company’s donation of state-of-the-art digital equipment. The gift will enhance George Eastman House’s in-house capabilities in film preservation, allowing broader access to the museum’s motion picture collection. The lab will be used for both digitizing select titles from the museum’s premier collection of more than 28,000 films, as well as preserving digitally-born works.
George Eastman House appoints Jurij Meden as curator of film exhibitions
George Eastman House announced today that Jurij Meden will join its Moving Image Department as curator of film exhibitions. Meden comes to Eastman House after serving as head of the film programming department at the Slovenska Kinoteka—a member of the International Federation of Film Archives (FIAF)—in Ljubljana, Slovenia. Meden will start in his new role with George Eastman House this fall and will be responsible for developing and managing the film and media programming for the Dryden Theatre and other exhibition spaces at the museum.
Innovation in the Imaging Capital to open at George Eastman House on September 20
For decades, Rochester was known as the imaging capital of the world. Innovation and invention by Rochester companies paved the way for the world we now live in, from medical testing to space exploration, digital capture and transmission, and more. On September 20, George Eastman House will open Innovation in the Imaging Capital, which highlights Rochester’s major contributions to the imaging story, showing technology made possible by inventions that were originated or developed locally.
Robert Burley: The Disappearance of Darkness Opens at George Eastman House on September 20
George Eastman House will open the exhibition Robert Burley: The Disappearance of Darkness on September 20. The exhibition examines both the dramatic and historical demise of film-manufacturing facilities and industrial darkrooms on an international scale, including corporations such as Kodak, Agfa-Gevaert, and Ilford. It documents the impact of the emergence of digital imaging technologies, which irrevocably changed photography and led to the abrupt and rapid breakdown of a century-old industry that embodied the medium’s material culture. The exhibition will be on view in the museum’s special exhibition galleries through January 4, 2015.
George Eastman House Welcomes Photographer Wayne Belger on September 4
In conjunction with his exhibition at ARTISANworks, photographer Wayne Martin Belger will be speaking at George Eastman House on September 4 at 6:00 p.m. Belger will be discussing his unique pinhole cameras and their intimate connection to the photographs he makes.
Filmmaker Rolf De Heer to Speak at Dryden Theatre on September 3
The Dryden Theatre at George Eastman House is bringing Dutch Australian filmmaker Rolf de Heer to Rochester on September 3, 2104. De Heer will host a discussion about his own work and the experience of moviemaking in Australia’s Northern Territory, following the Rochester premiere of his film, The Tracker (2002).
George Eastman House receives highest national recognition
George Eastman House has achieved reaccreditation by the American Alliance of Museums (AAM). The highest national recognition for a museum, accreditation signifies an institution’s excellence to the museum community, governments, funders, outside agencies, and the public. Out of the more than 35,000 museums in the country, George Eastman House is a part of the three percent that are accredited.
George Eastman House appoints Steven Schwartz as Chair of the Board of Trustees
George Eastman House has announced the appointment of Steven L. Schwartz, president and CEO of Tennis Corporation of America (TCA), based in Chicago, Illinois, as the new chair of its Board of Trustees.
George Eastman House to Host Google Art Talk
George Eastman House will host its second Google Art Talk on Thursday, June 12 at noon through the Google Art Project to discuss its Southworth & Hawes Preservation Project. Those interested in learning more about the museum’s collection of more than 1,200 daguerreotypes—the largest repository of work by Southworth & Hawes—and what Eastman House is doing to preserve it, can tune into the live lecture here: http://bit.ly/1hly6KB.
George Eastman House Photo Finish 5K community run/walk returns on September 27
The George Eastman House Photo Finish 5K hits the streets for its fourth year on September 27, with registration opening on June 4—National Running Day. After three successful years, raising money for more than 90 different organizations in the Greater Rochester area, this “philanthropy challenge” is looking to break the million dollar mark in 2014. This unique event allows dozens of organizations to raise funds for their own causes. More than 3,000 runners and walkers have participated since the inaugural run/walk in 2010, raising over $800,000 total for these organizations.
George Eastman House hires Virginia Dodier as associate librarian
George Eastman House announced today that Virginia Dodier has joined the museum as associate librarian for its Richard and Ronay Menschel Library. A specialist in libraries, archives and museums (LAM), she will maintain the research library and rare books collection of George Eastman House; serve as chief cataloger of the library’s collections and acquisitions; contribute to exhibitions, publications, and public programs developed by museum curatorial staff; and collaborate with other staff to provide an integrated approach to technology and other museum initiatives.
George Eastman House kicks off summer with Garden Vibes concert series on June 4
The Garden Vibes summer concert series at George Eastman House is back for its 21st year. The outdoor concerts will take place on Wednesday evenings, once a month from June through August. Bring a picnic, relax with friends, and enjoy family activities in George Eastman’s historic Townson Terrace Garden and the surrounding grounds. Concerts are 6 to 8 p.m.
Inaugural “A History of Photography” exhibition now open at George Eastman House
George Eastman House has dedicated its new History of Photography Gallery to rotating installations that trace photography’s historical path to the present through photographs and cameras from the museum’s collection. The photographs in the gallery will change approximately three times a year and the cameras once a year, continually refreshing the experience of visiting George Eastman House and offering regular opportunities to view the museum’s treasures.
“Mickalene Thomas: Happy Birthday to a Beautiful Woman” to open at George Eastman House on June 20
George Eastman House will feature the work of artist Mickalene Thomas in a new exhibition opening on June 20, Mickalene Thomas: Happy Birthday to a Beautiful Woman. In this exhibition, Thomas demonstrates her ongoing engagement with portraiture as a key to personal and cultural identity. Using her mother as her muse for the past decade, Thomas creates images that layer personal history with art history, revealing in the process the complex role of the mother-daughter bond for each woman’s sense of self. The exhibition will be on view in the museum’s Entrance Gallery through October 19.
The Power of the Image project Launches in China
On April 25, Beijing’s Temple of Heaven will become the site of one of the most memorable exhibitions of its kind – The Power of the Image. The exhibition will feature more than 200 works by 20 internationally-renowned professional photographers, including Pep Bonet, Michael Crouser, Lauren Greenfield, Peter Guttman, Jocelyn Bain Hogg, Nadav Kander, Frederic LaGrange, Yann Layma, Roman Loranc, Gerd Ludwig, Steve McCurry, Eric Meola, Sylvia Plachy, John Sexton, Matthew Jordan Smith, Eddie Soloway, Art Streiber, Joyce Tenneson, Art Wolfe and Qin Yuhai.
George Eastman House presents the 2014 Light & Motion Gala
George Eastman House will host its second Light & Motion Gala in New York City on Monday, May 5. The event, which highlights the museum’s work in photograph and film preservation and restoration, will pay tribute to the accomplishments of emerging and established artists in the fields of motion pictures and photography.
George Eastman House Opens “Of Time and Buildings” on March 8
George Eastman House will open its exhibition Of Time and Buildings on March 8. The exhibition includes work by several artists exploring the relationship between photographic images of the built environment and our experience of place. New ways of image-making are contrasted with earlier approaches to take people on a journey through place and time. The exhibition will be on view in the museum’s Entrance Gallery until June 8.
George Eastman House promotes Rheytchul Kimmel and Nick Marshall
George Eastman House has announced the promotion of two staff members. Rheytchul Kimmel has been promoted to chief object preparator and preservation framer in the object preparation area of the Kay R. Whitmore Conservation Center. Nick Marshall has been promoted to manager of exhibitions and programs in the communications and engagement department.
George Eastman House receives Hidden Collections grant from the Council on Library and Information Resources
George Eastman House is pleased to announce that it has received a grant from the Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR) through the Cataloging Hidden Special Collections and Archives program. The grant award of $155,900 will be used to hire two project archivists to process and create finding aids for the manuscript collections of four filmmakers.
Photography exhibitions by Robert Weingarten and Pavel Wolberg to open at George Eastman House on February 22
George Eastman House will open two exhibitions on February 22 that will be on view through May 25, 2014: Another America: A Testimonial to the Amish by Robert Weingarten and A World Apart: Photographs of Hasidic Communities in Israel by Pavel Wolberg. Another America is the culmination of four years, from 2000 to 2004, Robert Weingarten spent photographing Amish communities in Indiana, Iowa, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, and Wisconsin. On view at the same time, A World Apart is a selection of eighteen contemporary photographs by Pavel Wolberg.