Fall 2008
The Mystique of the Archive September 2, 2008 - January 4, 2009
Traces the life of an archive in an institution, demonstrating how collections are acquired, cataloged, preserved and how they support the quest for knowledge and endlessly yield new discoveries.
A Cabinet of Drawings September 2, 2008 - January 4, 2009
Preliminary drawings, designs, book illustrations, illustrated letters, landscapes and portraiture by internationally recognized artists, architects, designers, scientists and literary greats.
Spring 2008
On the Road with the Beats February 5 - August 3, 2008
A journey through the cities, landscapes, and communities that fostered and shaped the most important works of the Beat Generation, from the early 1940s to the mid-1960s.
Jess: To and From the Printed Page February 12 - April 6, 2008
Collage works and paintings by artist Burgess Collins ("Jess") which draw inspiration from the San Francisco culture and the works of his literary heroes, including the poet Robert Duncan. Organized by iCI.
Inside El Salvador April 17 - August 3, 2008
An exhibition of photographs chronicling the daily life of civilians in El Salvador in 1983 at the height of its 12-year civil war along with 30 photographs by Donna DeCesare documenting the war’s aftermath.
Fall 2007
Rehearsing the American Dream: Arthur Miller's Critical Theater September 4 - December 30, 2007
Uses Miller's plays to explore conscience in its theatrical expression: as an intertwined and interdependent political and emotional life.
Dress Up: Portrait and Performance in Victorian Photography September 4 - December 30, 2007
Features portrait and genre photography of the Victorian period that typically employs vivid artifice and unconcealed theatricality, placing it in opposition to today's conventional portraiture.
Spring 2007
Joe Ely's Bonfire of Roadmaps March 1 - April 2, 2007
An installation of drawings and poetic text by the Texas musician Joe Ely drawn from journals he kept as he toured across America and Europe.
The American Twenties January 30 - July 29, 2007
An exploration of the decade through the literature and art that was to become quintessentially American and quintessentially modern.
Fall 2006
Norman Mailer Takes On America September 5 - December 31, 2006
Featuring more than 200 items, the exhibition emphasizes iconic events and people from the 1940s through the 1970s—icons that Mailer's writings have drawn upon and reshaped for his reading public.
Feliks Topolski: Portraits of Britain's Twentieth-Century Literary Greats September 5 - December 31, 2006
Brings together for the first time all twenty Topolski portraits of British writers commissioned by the Ransom Center in 1960.
Spring 2006
The Image Wrought: Historical Photographic Approaches in the Digital Age January 31 - August 6, 2006
Examines the seeming paradox of contemporary photographers utilizing archaic photographic practices in the digital age.
Technologies of Writing January 31 - August 6, 2006
Explores the history, style, and technologies of writing from its earliest form to the present.
Fall 2005
Ansel Adams: A Legacy August 9, 2005 - January 1, 2006
A comprehensive survey of Adams's artistic career including 126 dramatic vistas of Yosemite Valley and the Southwest, a variety of portraits of Georgia O'Keeffe and others, intimate close-ups of nature, and architectural views.
Spring 2005
Shooting Stars: The Golden Age of Hollywood Portraiture, 1925-1950 January 11 - April 3, 2005
Shows how the Hollywood studio system created larger-than-life popular images of actors and actresses.
Fashioning Celebrity: Photographs of George Platt Lynes January 11 - April 3, 2005
Features photographs by George Platt Lynes, considered one of the earliest and most significant photographers of celebrity and style in America during the 1930s and 40s.
Place: Photographs of Environment and Community April 19 - July 17, 2005
Contemporary American photographers, many working in Texas, explore the notion of "place"—a space invested with personal meaning and complex relationships. While some of the photographers in this exhibit focus on particular rural or urban communities, others depict interactions between people and the natural environment.
Images of the World: Maps, Globes, and Atlases April 5 - July 17, 2005
This exhibition presents early cartographic treasures from the Ransom Center's collections, including the first printed map of the world (1472), a portolan chart used by early Portuguese navigators, a rare manuscript map (1610) of the Virginia coastline, and two magnificent globes of the earth and sky by Vincenzo Maria Coronelli.
The Muse in Motion: Travel Literature through the Centuries April 5 - July 17, 2005
This exhibition features historically influential travel books and manuscripts that demonstrate the universal currency of travel writing—its purposes, its utility, and its popular appeal. The selections span continents, centuries, and genres, ranging from early travel guide books and texts about the search for the Northwest Passage and Americans in Europe.
The Battle for the Eastern Front: Photographs from the William Broyles, Jr. Collection May 10 - July 17, 2005
To commemorate the 60th anniversary of the end of World War II in Europe, this exhibition of photographs documents Russia's involvement in the War, from Hitler's invasion of the Soviet Union to the fall of Berlin. These dramatic images of war and liberation are a recent gift to the Ransom Center.
In Flight: Artists' Books, Fine Bindings, and Broadsides May 10 - July 17, 2005
This juried, traveling exhibition explores the art and process of bookmaking with fine bindings and calligraphy, focusing on flight and aviation. Organized by the Guild of Book Workers, the show commemorates the 100-year anniversary of the Wright Brothers' first flight. The exhibition concludes its national tour at the Ransom Center.
Fall 2004
Writing Among the Ruins: Graham Greene and Evelyn Waugh October 5 - March 20, 2004
Examines the lives and literary achievements of Graham Greene and Evelyn Waugh, two of the greatest English novelists of the 20th century.
Miguel Covarrubias: A Certain Clairvoyance October 19, 2004 - April 24, 2005
Focuses on the art of modern caricature and this Mexican renaissance artist's drawings, paintings, books, and book illustrations.
Walker Evans and James Agee: Let Us Now Praise Famous Men November 2 - December 12, 2004
Features original manuscripts by James Agee and photographs by Walker Evans generated by their historic collaboration on this critical 1930s study of American culture.
Spring 2004
20 x 20: Twenty American Poets of the Twentieth Century April 6 - September 19, 2004
Explores how twenty American poets harnessed the power of poetry to help define the temper of a century marked by deep violence, technological advancement, and political upheaval.
Collaborative Spirit: Prints, Presses, & Deluxe Artists' Books April 6 - October 3, 2004
A survey of important late twentieth-century fine prints arising out of collaborations between writers and artists.
Photography's Turning Point: The Journal Camera Work April 20 - October 17, 2004
From 1903 to 1917 this important photographic journal promoted a dramatic shift in artistic photography from early pictorial work to modern images of the urban landscape.
Go Out and Look: The Photography of Russell Lee April 20 - October 17, 2004
Highlights the many aspects of Russell Lee's career, beginning with his 1930s work with the U.S. Farm Security Administration and culminating with his work as an active member of The University of Texas and Austin photographic communities.
Fall 2003
Make It New: The Rise of Modernism October 21, 2003 - March 7, 2004
Encourages a greater understanding of this movement in the arts that dominated the first half of the twentieth century.
Summer 2003
In a New Light May 13 - September 14, 2003
The Ransom Center's first exhibition in its renovated gallery space shines a new light on 300 of the Center's most important collection items—works by artists and authors who left an indelible imprint on our cultural heritage.
Fall 2000
"To Help the World to See:" An Eliot Elisofon Retrospective September 14 - December 18, 2000
A career retrospective about this American photographer, artist, art collector, author, and filmmaker. Elisofon joined the staff of Life magazine in 1942 as a war photographer-correspondent. He was also know for his experiments with color control and worked as a color consultant to the film industry.
Spring 2000
Islands of Order: A Decade of Collecting January 1 - June 30, 2000
An exhibition highlighting collection items acquired by the Ransom Center between 1989 and 1999.
Fall 1999
Aunt Dicy Tales: John Biggers' Drawings for the Folktale September 15, 1999 - January 15, 2000
An exhibition of the original 16 drawings by John Biggers used to illustrate a folk tale recorded by J. Mason Brewer.
Year
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Watch broadcast journalist Mike Wallace's interviews from the television program The Mike Wallace Interview. Wallace donated the show's footage on 16mm kinescope to the Ransom Center in the early 1960s. Most episodes have not been seen since they aired.
