AEGiS-AP: Herb Ritts Works Donated Associated PressImportant note: Information in this article was accurate in 2007. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
Click here to return to Associated Press main menu




DonateNow



Herb Ritts Works Donated

Associated Press - Friday, April 6, 2007


The foundation established after the death of celebrity photographer Herb Ritts is donating $2.5 million and 189 of his works to the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, which plans to create a photography gallery in his honor.

The MFA held a major retrospective of Ritts' work in 1996. The new Herb Ritts Gallery for Photography will be part of the museum's new wing, opening in 2010.

Ritts, who died in 2002 at the age of 50, photographed President Reagan, physicist Steven Hawking and the Dalai Lama as well as supermodels and movie stars, mostly in black and white. He published several books of photographs, did work for top fashion designers, and took pictures for album covers and directed music videos, winning two MTV Awards in 1991.

Some critics said at the time of the MFA's Ritts show, which attracted more than 250,000 visitors, that it was closer to popular culture than fine art.

"When we did the exhibition, it was a critical point in Herb Ritts' career, and it was an important moment for the museum as well," MFA director Malcolm Rogers told The Boston Globe on Thursday, when the gift was announced.

"The museum was making a major statement about accessibility, about what we thought was art, and what we thought were the preoccupations of a younger generation in America, and Ritts was just a wonderful vehicle to make that statement."

The gift to the MFA is the largest ever by the Herb Ritts Foundation, which has focused largely on AIDS-related causes since it was founded in 2003, its executive director Mark McKenna said.
070406
AP070412


Copyright © 2007 - Associated Press. Reproduction of this article (other than one copy for personal reference) must be cleared through the AP Permissions Desk.

AEGiS is a 501(c)3, not-for-profit, tax-exempt, educational corporation. AEGiS is made possible through unrestricted funding from Boehringer Ingelheim, Bridgestone/Firestone Charitable Trust, Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, Elton John AIDS Foundation, the National Library of Medicine, Roche and Trimeris, and donations from users like you. Always watch for outdated information. This article first appeared in 2007. This material is designed to support, not replace, the relationship that exists between you and your doctor.

AEGiS presents published material, reprinted with permission and neither endorses nor opposes any material. All information contained on this website, including information relating to health conditions, products, and treatments, is for informational purposes only. It is often presented in summary or aggregate form. It is not meant to be a substitute for the advice provided by your own physician or other medical professionals. Always discuss treatment options with a doctor who specializes in treating HIV.

Copyright ©1980, 2007. AEGiS. All materials appearing on AEGiS are protected by copyright as a collective work or compilation under U.S. copyright and other laws and are the property of AEGiS, or the party credited as the provider of the content. .