History
The Center for Creative Photography was established in May 1975 with the purchase of five photographers' archives, an operating budget of $75,000, and a staff of three. The inaugural exhibition, From the Center for Creative Photography, featured these founding archives—Ansel Adams, Wynn Bullock, Harry Callahan, Aaron Siskind, and Frederick Sommer. While these and future archives focused on twentieth-century American photography, the print collection was quickly developed to represent the larger history of photography as well as international practice. Collection development continues at a rate of one to three new archives per year, providing the centerpiece holdings to a now large and diverse representation of the art of photography.