In Dialogue

In Dialogue was a program of installations across the Getty Center’s four pavilions. Inspired by points of visual symmetry between works of art, each rotation placed modern and contemporary photographs by international artists in conversation with European paintings, works on paper, sculpture, and decorative arts created before 1900. Through compelling juxtapositions, In Dialogue invited visitors to explore diverse perspectives on recurring themes and to consider both historical and contemporary works in a new context.

• Four rotations were presented between 2021 and 2023, featuring the work of 42 artists from 16 countries
  
• Highlighted new photography acquisitions by international contemporary artists
  
• Program of weekly public tours linked the Museum’s Paintings, Sculpture & Decorative Arts, and Photographs collections
  
• Contemporary photographers were interviewed about their work for the Getty’s Communications channels and internal documentation
  
• Increased awareness and presence of the Museum’s collection of contemporary photographs and the work of international contemporary artists

In 2020, the Getty Museum’s Department of Photographs collaborated with curators in the departments of Paintings and Sculpture & Decorative Arts to develop dynamic installations of modern and contemporary photographs in the Museum’s galleries of pre-1900 European art. With Getty’s Center for Photographs closed for renovation, curators sought opportunities to display works that had recently entered the collection. As the Department of Photographs is the only Museum department that collects work by modern and contemporary artists, this represented an opportunity to put new acquisitions of photographs by artists working globally in conversation with the Museum’s historic collections of European art.

Inspired by points of visual symmetry and thematic convergence, several installations sought to explore universal themes across time and region, such as family, mortality, gender, and class. Other installations focused on specific art-historical genres, such as portraiture, landscape, and still life, and engaged directly with the history of art and its presentation in museums. The series encouraged visitors to make connections between works of art spanning different media, styles, cultures, and time periods.

Department of Photographs:
Arpad Kovacs, Amanda Maddox, Antares Wells

In partnership with:
Department of Paintings (Rotations 1, 2, 4)
Department of Sculpture and Decorative Arts (Rotations 1, 2, 4)
Department of Drawings (Rotation 3)