Penn Museum | Traveling Exhibits

This exhibition offers a tour of the eastern Mediterranean to see its ancient monuments and artifacts, fascinating people, and vibrant cities through the eyes of a 19th century traveler before the defeat of the Ottoman Empire in WWI—50 magnificent photographs from Maison Bonfils.

Maison Bonfils was a talented trio of photographers: Felix, Lydie and their son Adrien. The apparent contradictions within their vast photographic output are expressions of their distinct personalities and interests. All three shared a fascination with the architectural and human inhabitants of the Eastern Mediterranean.

Maison Bonfils pioneered Near Eastern ethnographic portraiture in photographs ranging from impromptu location shots to staged compositions. The trio successfully spread awareness and understanding of eastern Mediterranean peoples, places and culture with a humanistic spirit and without a trace of the ethnographic or cultural condescension characteristic of some European photographers. Their work remains esthetically appealing, historically interesting and intellectually provocative.

Availability	Spring 2009
Gallery Space	min. 200 running feet
Venue Period	12 weeks. Every effort will be made to accommodate special requests from borrowers.
Contents	50 framed wall-ready photographs Venues may alter the arrangement and number of images they exhibit. Piece labels, section captions, introductory wall panel and map accompany the exhibit. These materials are also provided in disc form. Public relations material will be provided prior to the opening of the exhibit. A large-format hard cover book and related poster are also available. Speaker is available on request.
Shipping	To be arranged by the University of Pennsylvania Museum. Venue is responsible for inbound shipping costs.
Insurance	Covered by Penn Museum.
Installation/ Deinstallation	No courier necessary. Qualified staff at borrowing institution will install and deinstall the exhibition.
Requirements	Facility report must be submitted for review before approval of loan. Borrowing institutions must complete incoming and outgoing condition reports. The borrower must adhere to temperature and light controls for this exhibit.
Contacts	Kevin Lamp Traveling Exhibits Coordinator 215-573-9312 klamp@sas.upenn.edu or Katherine Blanchard Assistant Traveling Exhibits Coordinator 215-746-6976 kblancha@sas.upenn.edu