Martha Rosler at Hessel Museum of Art at Bard College

Curated by artist Walead Beshty, with works by over 80 artists (ranging from historical documents to major installations), Picture Industry reflects upon transformations in the production and distribution of photographic images as realized through its varied constructions of the corporeal, from its origin as scientific tool and a means of cultural investigation to its phenomenological effects on a viewer. Methodologically, the exhibition complicates traditional accounts of the medium, drawing from photography’s role within science and the humanities to contemporary art. The exhibition encompasses a broad range of photographic practices from the late 19th century to the present.