MEMPHIS, TENNESSEE.-Memphis Brooks Museum of Art is pleased to present a collection of photographs by the legendary photographer, Dr. Ernest Withers. Through the generosity of donors, a group of 122 Withers' photographs was recently purchased for the Brooks' permanent collection. Many of these works are included in the current exhibition and will remain on view through October 15, 2005. Ernest Withers and Memphis: Capturing a City is a chronological survey of Mr. Withers' wide range of subjects that document the history of Memphis, the city he was born and raised in, and devoted his career to exploring. Mr. Withers' photographs, whether of musicians, the Negro Baseball League, or the civil rights movement, capture with simple grace and dramatic power both the personalities of his subjects and the importance of the historical moment. His evocative, iconic photographs have not only become a part of our nation's visual culture, but also that of the entire world.
The exhibition includes images of the sanitation workers, debutantes, funerals, and many other daily rituals. There are numerous photographs of music in Memphis, from well-dressed club goers enjoying such vanished venues as the Hippodrome and the Flamingo Club, to Howlin' Wolf in a grocery store, and Isaac Hayes and Helen Washington performing. A shot of B.B. King on Beale Street in 1994 closes the exhibition. Mr. Withers continues to take photographs and can often be seen around town at work with his cameras. A local fixture, he is also a national celebrity, and a Memphis treasure.
The mission of the Memphis Brooks Museum of Art is to enrich the lives of our diverse community through the Museum's expanding collection, varied exhibitions, and dynamic programs that reflect the art of world cultures from antiquity to the present. One of the Brooks' top collecting goals is to increase the holdings of works by African American artists. This gift ensures that an important piece of Memphis history, as captured through Mr. Withers' camera lens, will be preserved for future generations.
