Center for Creative Photography

The Center for Creative Photography at the University of Arizona stands as one of the foremost institutions dedicated to the study, preservation, and celebration of photography. Founded in 1975 through the collaboration of University President John Schaefer and the legendary photographer Ansel Adams, the Center was envisioned as more than just a repository for a single artist’s work. Instead, it was conceived as a living archive that would bring together the legacies of many of the greatest photographers of the twentieth century.

The Center’s origins began with the archives of Adams himself, along with those of Wynn Bullock, Harry Callahan, Aaron Siskind, and Frederick Sommer. From that foundation, the collections quickly grew to encompass more than 270 archives, including those of Edward Weston, W. Eugene Smith, Garry Winogrand, and Lola Álvarez Bravo. Today, the Center safeguards over eight million archival objects, ranging from negatives, prints, and contact sheets to personal correspondence, writings, audiovisual materials, and ephemera that illuminate the creative lives of these artists.

Alongside its archival treasures, the Center holds a fine art collection of more than 110,000 works by over 2,200 photographers, ensuring that its holdings reflect both the historic masters and contemporary voices shaping the medium. The research library, filled with rare books, journals, exhibition catalogs, and an extensive oral history archive, adds depth to its scholarly resources.

The Center is not only a museum but also an active study and teaching institution. It hosts exhibitions, organizes traveling shows, and supports research projects that make photography accessible to broad audiences while fostering deeper academic inquiry. By uniting art, history, and education, the Center for Creative Photography continues to honor the vision of Ansel Adams and his peers, standing as a dynamic resource for understanding photography’s enduring impact on culture and society.