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 “Pursuit
of Beauty: California Indian Basketry & Art of Ansel Adams” will be on
display until June in the second-floor Ellipse in the Table Mountain
Rancheria Tower in the new Henry Madden Library at California State
University, Fresno.
Hours are 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Friday, 1-5 p.m. Saturday and 1-8 p.m. Sunday.
The show is the first exhibition in the new Library’s 3,700-square-foot
gallery space. Library Dean Peter McDonald said other shows will
regularly be featured in the Ellipse.
Rare and historic baskets from this region were the source of many of
the features of the new Madden Library building, which opened in
February. The granite stone entryway is an artistic replication of the
stair-step basket pattern constructed of locally quarried Academy Black
and Sierra White granite from quarries in Clovis and Raymond. The design
was carefully constructed and laid stone by stone to ensure the accuracy
of the pattern. The entryway is surrounded by wood slats that replicate
the basket weaving pattern from the Table Mountain Rancheria Tower.
The ribbon-like form of the stairway on the north side of the building
is blanketed in woven metal reflecting the intricate weaving of the
basket.
Many of Ansel Adams’ most revered photographs convey his love of
Yosemite and the High Sierra. The Madden exhibition, curated by Jeanne
Falk Adams, includes some of Ansel Adams rarest, most important work as
well as iconic images for which he is best known. The photographs are
all from the collection of Jeanne and Michael Adams.
Many of the photographs in the exhibition appeared in the 2002 Museum of
Modern Art show, “Ansel Adams at 100.” The works were selected by John
Szarkowski, director of Photography there for 25 years, who is often
considered the “dean of photography.” Szarkowski observed, “Adams’
pictures have revised our sense of what we mean when we say ‘landscape.’
”
Entrance to the exhibition is free. Self-guided tour booklets are
available so that visitors may enjoy the new building. Parking is
available in Lots D and E and is free on weekends.
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