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The ’70s Lens: Reimagining Documentary Photography

Now on View

October 6, 2024 – April 6, 2025
West Building, Ground Floor — Gallery G29

See how documentary photography transformed during the 1970s.

The 1970s was a decade of uncertainty in the United States. Americans witnessed soaring inflation, energy crises, and the Watergate scandal, as well as protests about pressing issues such as the Vietnam War, women’s rights, gay liberation, and the environment. The country’s profound upheaval formed the backdrop for a revolution in documentary photography. Activism and a growing awareness and acceptance of diversity opened the field to underrepresented voices. At the same time, artistic experimentation fueled the reimagining of what documentary photographs could look like.

Featuring some 100 works by more than 80 artists, The ʼ70s Lens examines how photographers reinvented documentary practice during this radical shift in American life. Mikki Ferrill and Frank Espada used the camera to create complex portraits of their communities. Tseng Kwong Chi and Susan Hiller demonstrated photography’s role in the development of performance and conceptual art. With pictures of suburban sprawl, artists like Lewis Baltz and Joe Deal challenged popular ideas of nature as pristine. And Michael Jang and Joanne Leonard made interior views that examine the social landscape of domestic spaces.

The questions these artists explored—about photography’s ethics, truth, and power—continue to be considered today.

Explore Selected Works

The ’70s Lens: Reimagining Documentary Photography

Anthony Barboza, New York City, 1970s, gelatin silver print, Pepita Milmore Memorial Fund, 2021.71.2
The ’70s Lens: Reimagining Documentary Photography

Michael Jang, Study Hall, 1973, gelatin silver print, Charina Endowment Fund, 2022.119.1
The ’70s Lens: Reimagining Documentary Photography

Mikki Ferrill, Untitled, 1973, gelatin silver print, Alfred H. Moses and Fern M. Schad Fund, 2020.98.5
The ’70s Lens: Reimagining Documentary Photography

Helen Levitt, New York, 1972, dye imbibition print , Patrons' Permanent Fund, 1995.36.99
The ’70s Lens: Reimagining Documentary Photography

Frank Espada, Manuel Molina, Mushroom Worker, Kennett Square, Pennsylvania, 1981, gelatin silver print, Pepita Milmore Memorial Fund, 2023.26.4
The ’70s Lens: Reimagining Documentary Photography

Tseng Kwong Chi, New York, New York, 1979, printed 2008, gelatin silver print, Alfred H. Moses and Fern M. Schad Fund and Gift of Funds from Renee Harbers Liddell, 2023.12.3
The ’70s Lens: Reimagining Documentary Photography

William Eggleston, Used Tires, 1973, dye imbibition print , Patrons' Permanent Fund, 2001.67.68
The ’70s Lens: Reimagining Documentary Photography

Anthony Hernandez, Washington, DC #11, 1975, gelatin silver print, Corcoran Collection (Museum Purchase), 2015.19.4154
The ’70s Lens: Reimagining Documentary Photography

Bill Owens, Ronald Reagan, 1972, gelatin silver print, Patrons' Permanent Fund, 2001.67.176
The ’70s Lens: Reimagining Documentary Photography

John Pfahl, Six Oranges, Buffalo, New York, 1975, dye imbibition print, Patrons' Permanent Fund, 2001.67.177
The ’70s Lens: Reimagining Documentary Photography

Ana Mendieta, Untitled, 1979, gelatin silver print, Gift of the Collectors Committee, 2007.2.3
The ’70s Lens: Reimagining Documentary Photography

Larry Fink, Studio 54, New York City, May 1977, gelatin silver print, Gift of Tony Podesta Collection, Washington, DC, 2017.160.38
The ’70s Lens: Reimagining Documentary Photography

Kenneth Josephson, Wyoming, 1971, gelatin silver print, Patrons' Permanent Fund, 2001.67.112
The ’70s Lens: Reimagining Documentary Photography

Nan Goldin, Christmas at The Other Side, Boston, 1972, gelatin silver print, Patrons' Permanent Fund, 2008.30.16
The ’70s Lens: Reimagining Documentary Photography

Mitch Epstein, Massachusetts Turnpike, 1973, printed 2005, chromogenic print, Gift of Timothy and Suzanne Hyde in Honor of the 25th Anniversary of Photography at the National Gallery of Art, 2016.124.1
The ’70s Lens: Reimagining Documentary Photography

Jeanne Moutoussamy-Ashe, Maid of Honor with Bride in Slippers, Daufuskie Island, South Carolina, 1980, printed 2022, gelatin silver print, Gift of Funds from Diana and Mallory Walker, 2024.7.3
The ’70s Lens: Reimagining Documentary Photography

Joan Jonas, Gwenn Thomas, Untitled (Joan Jonas Performing "Twilight"), 1975, gelatin silver print, Gift of Eileen and Michael Cohen, 2011.93.29
The ’70s Lens: Reimagining Documentary Photography

Thomas Barrow, Dart, 1974, printed 1994, gelatin silver print, Randi and Bob Fisher Fund, 2013.119.1
The ’70s Lens: Reimagining Documentary Photography

Shawn Walker, Untitled (New York City), c. 1980, gelatin silver print, Charina Endowment Fund, 2018.82.3
The ’70s Lens: Reimagining Documentary Photography

Joanne Leonard, Memo Center with Wall Plaque, c. 1975, gelatin silver print, Gift of the Artist in honor of her daughter, Julia Marjorie Leonard, 2020.117.16
The ’70s Lens: Reimagining Documentary Photography

Joe Deal, View, Globe, Arizona, 1977, gelatin silver print, Gift of Dr. Richard A. and Mrs. Alice Thall, 2018.139.2
The ’70s Lens: Reimagining Documentary Photography

Susan Hiller, Ten Months, 1977–1979, 10 gelatin silver prints and 10 text panels, Gift of the Collectors Committee, Alfred H. Moses and Fern M. Schad Fund, Gregory and Aline Gooding Fund, and David Knaus Fund, 2020.76.1.a-t
The ’70s Lens: Reimagining Documentary Photography

Lewis Baltz, Tract House #4, 1971, gelatin silver print, Corcoran Collection (Gift of the artist), 2014.136.385
The ’70s Lens: Reimagining Documentary Photography

Lynne Cohen, Exhibition Hall, 1977, gelatin silver print, Pepita Milmore Memorial Fund, 2019.34.5
The ’70s Lens: Reimagining Documentary Photography

Sunil Gupta, Untitled #22, 1976, printed 2023, gelatin silver print, Alfred H. Moses and Fern M. Schad Fund, 2023.152.3

Dive Deeper

story

12 Documentary Photographers Who Changed the Way We See the World

Photographers of the 1970s revolutionized the medium through innovations of both style and subject.

Read more

story

Visionary Photographer Tseng Kwong Chi's American Adventure

Discover the artist's “East Meets West” series exploring American identity and exclusion.

Read more

video

The ‘70s Lens: A Conversation with Anthony Hernandez

Artist Anthony Hernandez discusses the past 50 years of his work.  

Watch

Organization
Organized by the National Gallery of Art, Washington

Curated by Andrea Nelson, associate curator, department of photographs, National Gallery of Art.

Sponsors
The exhibition is made possible through the leadership support of the Trellis Fund.

Passes
Admission is always free and passes are not required