New Exhibitions

Two presentations featuring three extraordinary works will open at the MFAH this month: W. Eugene Smith and James Nachtwey on October 14; and Map of the Ten Thousand Countries of the Earth on October 20.

W. Eugene Smith and James Nachtwey are known for making some of the most powerful photographs in the history of journalism. Born 30 years apart, each pushed the boundaries of their profession in substantial ways that reflect different eras of magazine publishing: Smith the heyday of printed picture magazines and Nachtwey the burgeoning digital era. The mission for both Smith (1918–1978) and Nachtwey (born 1948): to bear witness. W. Eugene Smith and James Nachtwey focuses on their depictions of medical practices: Smith with his landmark series of images documenting the working life of a rural country doctor, and Nachtwey with his intensely complex images that capture a modern operating room on the front lines. On view through January 1, 2013.

Matteo Ricci’s Kunyu wanguo quantu (Map of the Ten Thousand Countries of the Earth) will be on view in the Ting Tsung and Wei Fong Chao Arts of China gallery at the MFAH. This tremendously important work will be on loan from the James Ford Bell Trust from October 20, 2012 through January 21, 2013.  The Map of the Ten Thousand Countries of the Earth has been referred to by scholars as “the impossible black tulip” for its rarity and exceptional quality, and it is the earliest surviving map to have provided the early Chinese with a larger view of the earth blending eastern and western cartography.

Matteo Ricci Map - Exhibition Notice

Smith Nachtwey - Exhibition Notice