Callahan, Harry

Harry Callahan, in full Harry Morey Callahan, (born October 22, 1912, Detroit, Michigan, U.S.—died March 15, 1999, Atlanta, Georgia), American photographer noted for his innovative photographs of commonplace objects and scenes.

Hear Harry Callahan discussing his initial days in photography and the first time seeing an Ansel Adams printSee all videos for this article

Callahan had no formal training in photography and was a hobbyist until 1941, when he saw photographs by the landscape photographer Ansel Adams. He was then inspired to search for his own photographic style. Callahan’s primary subjects were landscapes, cityscapes, and varied, unconventional portraits of his wife and daughter, all imagery he would explore throughout his career. He tended to avoid literal representations in his work, preferring instead to emphasize quietly lyrical abstract design. In 1946 László Moholy-Nagy and Arthur Siegel invited Callahan to join the staff of Chicago’s Institute of Design (from 1949 part of the Illinois Institute of Technology), where from 1949 to 1961 he was head of the photography department. From 1961 until 1973 he helped develop a photography department at the Rhode Island School of Design in Providence.

In the late 1970s Callahan became interested in the aesthetic possibilities of colour film. He did not print his colour slides until 1978, when he became the first photographer chosen to represent the United States at the Venice Biennale. By 1980 he was using colour almost exclusively. The Museum of Modern Art in New York City presented a major retrospective exhibition of his work in 1976. Collections of his photographs include Water’s Edge (1980), Harry Callahan: Color 1945–1980 (1980), Eleanor (1984), and Harry Callahan: New Color Photographs, 1978–1987 (1988). In 1997 he was awarded the National Medal of the Arts.