Nathan Lyons
Untitled, 1974-1998
Gelatin silver print, printed c. 1974-1998
7 x 5 in.
Nathan Lyons
Untitled, 1958
Gelatin silver print, printed c. 1958
6 5/8 x 9 1/2 in.
Nathan Lyons
Rochester (T-shape), 1961
Gelatin silver print, printed c. 1961
Nathan Lyons
Untitled, 1962-1974
Gelatin silver print, printed 1962-1974
4 1/2 x 6 3/4 in.
Nathan Lyons
Untitled (Notations in Passing), 1962-74
Gelatin silver print, printed c. 1962-74
Nathan Lyons
Untitled (Return Your Mind to Its Upright Position), 1998-2013
Gelatin silver print, printed c. 2014
Nathan Lyons
Untitled (Return Your Mind to Its Upright Position), 1998-2013
Gelatin silver print, printed c. 2014
Nathan Lyons
Untitled, 1974-1998
Gelatin silver prints, printed c. 1974-1998
5 x 14 in.
Nathan Lyons
Untitled, 1974-1998
Gelatin silver prints, printed c. 1974-1998
5 x 14 in.
Nathan Lyons
Untitled, 1974-1998
Gelatin silver prints, printed c. 1974-1998
5 x 14 in.
Nathan Lyons
Untitled, 1974-1998
Gelatin silver prints, printed c. 1974-1998
5 x 14 in.
Nathan Lyons
Untitled, 1974-1998
Gelatin silver prints, printed c. 1974-1998
5 x 14 in.
Nathan Lyons
Untitled, 1974-1998
Gelatin silver prints, printed c. 1974-1998
5 x 14 in.
Nathan Lyons is known for his honest and often questioning depictions of America’s cultural landscape. The artist has exerted a profound impact on the field of critical visual thinking for more than forty years. He is interested in the strategic juxtaposition of images that alter the meaning of the image itself, and create an open-ended space for dialogue. Lyons devises sequences of black and white pictures often mounted as diptychs, that incorporate signage, graffiti and advertisement in order to explore the use of language in imagery, form visual puns, or critically assess the American scene. The artist’s perception of the world as a vast repertoire of signs awaiting to be decrypted reflects the current changes taking place in contemporary society, where the written word is no longer dominant, and people are constantly surrounded by an image-driven environment.
Lyons was born in 1930 in Jamaica, New York. The artist has been a force for change in his roles as educator, curator, and author. He holds honorary Doctorates from Rhode Island School of Design and the Corcoran School of Arts, and Alfred University where he also earned his B.F.A. In 1969, he founded the prestigious Visual Studies Workshop in Rochester, New York, which he directed until 2001. Lyons has been the recipient of many distinguished honors throughout his career including the International Center of Photography’s Infinity Award for Lifetime Achievement in Photography in 2000 and National Endowment for the Arts Senior Fellowship in 1985. In 2006 he had his first major solo exhibition at Bruce Silverstein, followed by Return Your Mind to Its Upright Position in 2014.
Since the 1950s, he has exhibited widely in the United States and internationally at the George Eastman House, Rochester, New York; Houston Center for Photography, Texas; International Center of Photography, New York; Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, Texas; National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa; Centro Nacional de las Artes, Mexico City; and at the SICOF 10th International Exhibition at Milan, Italy among others.
Lyons’ work is in over 60 permanent collections in major museums including the Addison Gallery of American Art, Andover, Massachusetts; Bibliothèque Nationale de Paris, France; Chicago Art Institute; Hallmark Collection, Kansas City, Missouri; International Center of Photography, New York; Los Angeles County Museum of Art; Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles; Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, Texas; Museum of Modern Art, New York; National Museum of Modern Art, Kyoto, Japan; and the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art.
He is the author of several important books and catalogs, including Persistence of Vision (1968), Photography in the 20th Century (1967), Towards a Social Landscape (1967), and Photographers on Photography (1966).
2017 Final Chapter, Affirmation Arts, NY
2015 New Arrivals: Photographs from the O'Neil Collection, Baltimore Museum of Art, Baltimore, MD
2014 Return Your Mind to it's Upright Position, Bruce Silverstein Gallery, NY
2011 Abstract Expressionist New York; Museum of Modern Art, NY
2009 After 9/11; Artisan Works, Rochester, NY
2008 “Minor Impact.” Group show, Howard Greenberg Gallery, NY.
2006 Nathan Lyons TRILOGY, Bruce Silverstein Gallery, NY.
2005 After 9/11; Tremaine Gallery, The Hotchkiss School, Lakeville, CT.
2003 After 9/11; Light Work, Syracuse, NY. After 9/11; Centro Nacional de las Artes, Centro de la Imagen, Mexico City, Mexico, (9/18-10/26) After 9/11; ACTA International, Rome, Italy (11/26-12)
2002 Riding First Class on the Titanic; edited version, Crystal City Photography. After 9/11; portfolio with additional prints, Spectrum Gallery, Rochester, NY. After 9/11; portfolio, Howard Greenberg Gallery, New York, NY.
2000 Riding First Class on the Titanic; Addison Museum of Art, Andover, MA (traveled to International Center of Photography, New York, NY; George Eastman House, Rochester, NY; University of Maryland, Baltimore, MD; Houston Center for Photography, Houston, TX; Savannah College of Art, Savannah, GA.
1997 Riding First Class on the Titanic; Little Theater Gallery, Rochester, NY.
1991 Riding First Class on the Titanic; Atlanta Photo Gallery, Atlanta, GA.
1989 Atlanta Photography Group, Atlanta, GA.
1988 Photogroup, Miami, FL.
1987 Riding First Class on the Titanic; Albright-Knox Gallery and CEPA Gallery, Buffalo, NY. Riding First Class on the Titanic; Spectrum Gallery, Light Impressions, Rochester, NY. Recent Photographs; Film in the Cities, Minneapolis, MN.
1986 Riding First Class on the Titanic: A Work in Progress; Catskill Center for Photography, Woodstock, NY.
1983 Nathan Lyons and the Visual Studies Workshop; SICOF 10th International Exhibition, Milan, Italy.
1982 Verbal Landscape; (with Bart Parker), Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, TX.
1977 Deja Vue Gallery, Toronto, Ontario, Canada (with Joan Lyons). Nathan Lyons: 100 Photographs from Notations in Passing; University of Maryland, Baltimore County, MD.
1976 Nathan Lyons; Cronin Gallery, Houston, TX. Nathan Lyons; Ackerman Gallery of Photography, Northfield, MN.
1975 Notations in Passing; Carl Siembab Gallery, Boston, MA. Notations in Passing; Cronin Gallery, Houston, TX. Notations in Passing; Museum Art Gallery, Western Illinois University, Macon, IL. Nathan Lyons: Notations in Passing; Oakton Community College, Morton Grove, IL. Nathan Lyons: Notations in Passing; Upton Gallery, SUNY at Buffalo, NY. Notations in Passing; University of Colorado, Boulder, CO.
1974 Nathan Lyons; Light Gallery, New York, NY. Notations in Passing; Spectrum Gallery, Light Impressions, Rochester, NY. Chapman College, Orange, CA (traveling exhibition).
1973 Addison Gallery of American Art, Andover, MA (traveling exhibition).
1972 Recent photographs by Nathan Lyons; Columbia College Chicago, Chicago, IL. Notations in Passing, 1970; National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa (traveling exhibition).
1971 Notations in Passing, 1971; University of Colorado, Boulder, CO.
1969 Photographs: Nathan Lyons; Carl Siembab Gallery, Boston, MA. Alfred University, Alfred, NY. Image 69; University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT.
1968 Congregational Church (University of Iowa), Iowa City, IA.
1967 Nathan Lyons; Phoenix College, Phoenix, AZ. Jacksonville Art Museum, Jacksonville, FL. Museum of Art, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR.
1965 Nathan Lyons: Photographs; University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN.
1963 University of Florida, Gainesville, FL.
1962 Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ. Invitational Photography Exhibition; Rhode Island Arts Festival, Providence, RI.
1961 Carl Siembab Gallery, Boston, MA.
1960 Nathan Lyons; Rochester Institute of Technology, Rochester, NY. Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
1959 Seven Days a Week; Boston University, Boston, MA. Indiana University, Bloomington, IN.
1958 Seven Days a Week; George Eastman House, Rochester, NY. Seven Days a Week; Glidden Gallery, Alfred University, Alfred.
