Annie Leibovitz
The Early Years, 1970 – 1983: Archive Project No. 1

February 14 - April 14, 2019

Los Angeles

Beginning 14 February, Hauser & Wirth will present ‘Annie Leibovitz. The Early Years, 1970 – 1983: Archive Project No. 1,’ a new installation of the 2017 exhibition of the same title presented by the LUMA Foundation’s Parc des Ateliers in Arles, France. As the first comprehensive exhibition in Los Angeles devoted to the earliest work of this renowned American artist, ‘The Early Years’ features more than 4,000 photographs taken between 1970 and 1983.

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Events

Sat 16 Feb 2019, 3 pm – 12 am

Public opening: ‘Annie Leibovitz. The Early Years, 1970 – 1983: Archive Project No. 1’

Join us for the public opening of ‘Annie Leibovitz. The Early Years, 1970 – 1983: Archive Project No. 1,’ an extension of the 2017 survey of the same title presented by the LUMA Foundation at the festival Rencontres d’Arles, France. The first comprehensive exhibition in Los Angeles devoted to the earliest work of this renowned American, ‘The Early Years’ features more than 4,000 photographs taken between 1970 – 1983.

Family Studio Workshop: Photo Drawings

Inspired by Annie Leibovitz’s prolific career and her inventive approach to photography, in this Family Studio Workshop, participants will embark on their own photojournalist adventure. By exploring the Hauser & Wirth garden and courtyard for subjects: a chicken, their parents, or graffiti on the wall, participants will document their surroundings through drawing. These ‘photo drawings’, when completed, will be archived for everyone to enjoy, using string and push pins in a similar manner to the photographs displayed in ‘Annie Leibovitz. The Early Years, 1970 – 1983: Archive Project No.1’, currently on view in the North galleries. The workshop will be led by Matt MacFarland. This drop-in activity is free, however, reservations are recommended. Click here to register. About the Exhibition ‘Annie Leibovitz. The Early Years, 1970 – 1983: Archive Project No. 1’ is a new installation of the 2017 exhibition of the same title presented by the LUMA Foundation’s Parc des Ateliers in Arles, France. As the first comprehensive exhibition in Los Angeles devoted to the earliest work of this renowned American artist, ‘The Early Years’ features more than 4,000 photographs taken between 1970 and 1983.

I Still Dream About California: A Film Series Organized by Annie Leibovitz

Hauser & Wirth Los Angeles is pleased to present a three-night film series organized by Annie Leibovitz on the occasion of the first exhibition in LA devoted to her earliest work, ‘Annie Leibovitz. The Early Years, 1970 – 1983: Archive Project No. 1.’ Titled after a quote from the artist, ‘I Still Dream About California’ will feature films that were influential in the early days of her career and exemplify the grit and beauty of life in urban California. Thursday 21 March 8 pm THE CONVERSATION (1974) Directed by Francis Ford Coppola, 1 hr 53 min Friday 22 March 8 pm THE LONG GOODBYE (1973) Directed by Robert Altman, 1 hr 52 min Saturday 23 March 8 pm CHINATOWN (1974) Directed by Roman Polanski, 2 hr 11 min This film series is sold out, however, waitlist registration is open. Click here to join the waitlist. Seating is first come, first served with possible standing room. The screenings will take place in the gallery's North Breezeway. Light snacks and non-alcoholic beverages will be available for purchase from Manuela. About The Exhibition As the first comprehensive exhibition in Los Angeles devoted to the earliest work of Annie Leibovitz, ‘The Early Years’ features more than 4,000 photographs taken between 1970 and 1983. Arranged chronologically and thematically, the exhibition begins with her work for Rolling Stone magazine and visually chronicles the defining moments and key protagonists of the decade. Over the course of her career, Leibovitz became an avatar of the changing cultural role of photography as an artistic medium. Pinned to walls gridded with string, the images on view reveal her singular ability to merge the tactics of portraiture and photojournalism with profound humanism and sly wit.

About the artist

Annie Leibovitz was born in 1949 in Connecticut. She bought her first camera in the summer of 1968, when she was a student at the San Francisco Art Institute, and her early works are punctuated by images of the Bay Area landscape and photographs shot during drives the artist often took on the highways between San Francisco and Los Angeles. She switched majors from painting to photography, and while still a student, in 1970, she approached Rolling Stone magazine—just three years after its inception—with a few of her pictures. Some of them were published, thus beginning her career as a photojournalist and embarking on what would develop into a symbiotic relationship between the young photographer and a magazine famous for reflecting the American zeitgeist. Leibovitz’s first major assignment was for a cover story on John Lennon.Leibovitz became Rolling Stone’s chief photographer in 1973, and by the time she left the magazine, she had amassed 142 covers and published photo essays on scores of stories, including the 1975 Rolling Stones tour. Moments of freedom and an unyielding imagination fed the evolution of Leibovitz’s photography. The monumental body of work taken during her thirteen-year tenure at Rolling Stone blurred the lines between celebrity and civilian, interviewer and interviewee, artist and subject, dissolving the boundary separating Leibovitz from those captured in her photographs. Documenting fellow reporters and photographers in addition to their subjects, Leibovitz highlighted those hidden behind the camera and brought them to the forefront.

Current Exhibitions