Mia Fineman, curator, department of photographs, Metropolitan Museum of Art

2019 marks 50 years since Apollo 11 landed on the moon on July 20, 1969, capturing the attention of viewers worldwide who eagerly awaited the first photographs taken onsite. Photography played a key role in the space race of the 1960s, both as a tool of scientific documentation and as a medium of public relations. In this lecture held on October 20, 2019, in celebration of the exhibitions By the Light of the Silvery Moon: A Century of Lunar Photographs at the National Gallery of Art and Apollo’s Muse: The Moon in the Age of Photography at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, curator Mia Fineman explores the connections as well as the tensions between these two functions, delving into the fascinating history of lunar imaging.