Mission

The primary focus of the MUUS Collection is to bring together American photography archives from the twentieth century.

Our mission as custodians of this collection is to make visible these exceptional photography archives through exhibitions, scholarship, donations, licensing, and the printing of images and books.

About

The MUUS Collection brings together photographic works that mark major turning points in American history, ultimately creating a road map of our shared past. We believe in the unique power of photography as an inimitable touchstone of collective cultural memory, and it is our goal to preserve and promote these invaluable artifacts for generations to come.

As a functional archive, the MUUS Collection builds, preserves, studies, and shares its outstanding collections of American photography, generating new scholarship and understanding, while instigating interesting and relevant dialogues within the wider photography community. The combined art, archival, and research materials that make up the MUUS Collection ultimately serve to deepen our appreciation of how photography impacts society.

We are dedicated to the critical understanding of historical photography and related media, and aim to highlight the ways in which the visual arts can facilitate a reflection of our shared American history. Where did we come from, and where are we going? What have we learned from our victories and mistakes, and how can we filter these lessons productively through our current moment?

"We were all involved in different struggles, including myself and many other transgender people. But in these struggles, in the Civil Rights movement, in the war movement, in the women's movement, we were still outcasts. The only reason they tolerated the transgender community in some of these movements was because we were gung-ho, we were front liners. We didn't take no sh** from nobody. We had nothing to lose. You all had rights. We had nothing to lose. I'll be the first one to step on any organization, any politician's toes if I have to, to get the rights for my community." - Sylvia Rivera⁠
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Above, Marsha P. Johnson and Sylvia Rivera take up a banner for their organization S.T.A.R.⁠ (Street Transvestites Action Revolutionaries) at a protest of the New York Women's House of Detention, December 21, 1970.⁠
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The duo spent their lives as grassroots activists, not only using their own money to house queer street youths, but protesting for civil liberties at the Stonewall Riots and later demonstrations. The two were often pushed to the margins of the movement due to their gender nonconformity, their political radicalism, their races, and their struggles with poverty and mental health. ⁠
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Though not widely known in their own time, Johnson and Rivera may now be the most famous transgender women of the early LGBTQ+ rights movement, finally receiving due recognition for their contributions to the community⁠.⁠
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© Fred W. McDarrah/MUUS Collection⁠
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#HistoryOnFIlm #PhotographyArchive #AnalogCameras #PhotoLibrary #PhotoArchives #VintagePhotographs #PortraitsOnFilm #ArchivesOfInstagram #FromTheArchive #PreservingHistory #FilmPhotos #FredMcDarrah #MarshaPJohnson #SylviaRivera #GayRights #LGBTQHistory #LGBTHistory #TransActivism #35mmPhotography #1970 #TheVillageVoice #QueerHistory #StonewallRiots #StonewallUprising #StonewallInn #TransgenderHistory #NewYorkWomensHouseOfDetention #AntiCarceral #StreetTransvestitesActionRevolutionaries #GayHistory
"We were all involved in different struggles, including myself and many other transgender people. But in these struggles, in the Civil Rights movement, in the war movement, in the women's movement, we were still outcasts. The only reason they tolerated the transgender community in some of these movements was because we were gung-ho, we were front liners. We didn't take no sh** from nobody. We had nothing to lose. You all had rights. We had nothing to lose. I'll be the first one to step on any organization, any politician's toes if I have to, to get the rights for my community." - Sylvia Rivera⁠ ⁠ Above, Marsha P. Johnson and Sylvia Rivera take up a banner for their organization S.T.A.R.⁠ (Street Transvestites Action Revolutionaries) at a protest of the New York Women's House of Detention, December 21, 1970.⁠ ⁠ The duo spent their lives as grassroots activists, not only using their own money to house queer street youths, but protesting for civil liberties at the Stonewall Riots and later demonstrations. The two were often pushed to the margins of the movement due to their gender nonconformity, their political radicalism, their races, and their struggles with poverty and mental health. ⁠ ⁠ Though not widely known in their own time, Johnson and Rivera may now be the most famous transgender women of the early LGBTQ+ rights movement, finally receiving due recognition for their contributions to the community⁠.⁠ ⁠ © Fred W. McDarrah/MUUS Collection⁠ .⁠ .⁠ .⁠ #HistoryOnFIlm #PhotographyArchive #AnalogCameras #PhotoLibrary #PhotoArchives #VintagePhotographs #PortraitsOnFilm #ArchivesOfInstagram #FromTheArchive #PreservingHistory #FilmPhotos #FredMcDarrah #MarshaPJohnson #SylviaRivera #GayRights #LGBTQHistory #LGBTHistory #TransActivism #35mmPhotography #1970 #TheVillageVoice #QueerHistory #StonewallRiots #StonewallUprising #StonewallInn #TransgenderHistory #NewYorkWomensHouseOfDetention #AntiCarceral #StreetTransvestitesActionRevolutionaries #GayHistory
"We were all involved in different struggles, including myself and many other transgender people. But in these struggles, in the Civil Rights movement, in the war movement, in the women's movement, we were still outcasts. The only reason they tolerated the transgender community in some of these movements was because we were gung-ho, we were front liners. We didn't take no sh** from nobody. We had nothing to lose. You all had rights. We had nothing to lose. I'll be the first one to step on any organization, any politician's toes if I have to, to get the rights for my community." - Sylvia Rivera⁠
⁠
Above, Marsha P. Johnson and Sylvia Rivera take up a banner for their organization S.T.A.R.⁠ (Street Transvestites Action Revolutionaries) at a protest of the New York Women's House of Detention, December 21, 1970.⁠
⁠
The duo spent their lives as grassroots activists, not only using their own money to house queer street youths, but protesting for civil liberties at the Stonewall Riots and later demonstrations. The two were often pushed to the margins of the movement due to their gender nonconformity, their political radicalism, their races, and their struggles with poverty and mental health. ⁠
⁠
Though not widely known in their own time, Johnson and Rivera may now be the most famous transgender women of the early LGBTQ+ rights movement, finally receiving due recognition for their contributions to the community⁠.⁠
⁠
© Fred W. McDarrah/MUUS Collection⁠
.⁠
.⁠
.⁠
#HistoryOnFIlm #PhotographyArchive #AnalogCameras #PhotoLibrary #PhotoArchives #VintagePhotographs #PortraitsOnFilm #ArchivesOfInstagram #FromTheArchive #PreservingHistory #FilmPhotos #FredMcDarrah #MarshaPJohnson #SylviaRivera #GayRights #LGBTQHistory #LGBTHistory #TransActivism #35mmPhotography #1970 #TheVillageVoice #QueerHistory #StonewallRiots #StonewallUprising #StonewallInn #TransgenderHistory #NewYorkWomensHouseOfDetention #AntiCarceral #StreetTransvestitesActionRevolutionaries #GayHistory
"We were all involved in different struggles, including myself and many other transgender people. But in these struggles, in the Civil Rights movement, in the war movement, in the women's movement, we were still outcasts. The only reason they tolerated the transgender community in some of these movements was because we were gung-ho, we were front liners. We didn't take no sh** from nobody. We had nothing to lose. You all had rights. We had nothing to lose. I'll be the first one to step on any organization, any politician's toes if I have to, to get the rights for my community." - Sylvia Rivera⁠ ⁠ Above, Marsha P. Johnson and Sylvia Rivera take up a banner for their organization S.T.A.R.⁠ (Street Transvestites Action Revolutionaries) at a protest of the New York Women's House of Detention, December 21, 1970.⁠ ⁠ The duo spent their lives as grassroots activists, not only using their own money to house queer street youths, but protesting for civil liberties at the Stonewall Riots and later demonstrations. The two were often pushed to the margins of the movement due to their gender nonconformity, their political radicalism, their races, and their struggles with poverty and mental health. ⁠ ⁠ Though not widely known in their own time, Johnson and Rivera may now be the most famous transgender women of the early LGBTQ+ rights movement, finally receiving due recognition for their contributions to the community⁠.⁠ ⁠ © Fred W. McDarrah/MUUS Collection⁠ .⁠ .⁠ .⁠ #HistoryOnFIlm #PhotographyArchive #AnalogCameras #PhotoLibrary #PhotoArchives #VintagePhotographs #PortraitsOnFilm #ArchivesOfInstagram #FromTheArchive #PreservingHistory #FilmPhotos #FredMcDarrah #MarshaPJohnson #SylviaRivera #GayRights #LGBTQHistory #LGBTHistory #TransActivism #35mmPhotography #1970 #TheVillageVoice #QueerHistory #StonewallRiots #StonewallUprising #StonewallInn #TransgenderHistory #NewYorkWomensHouseOfDetention #AntiCarceral #StreetTransvestitesActionRevolutionaries #GayHistory
In the lead up to our exhibition Highlights from the Archive: Celebrating 10 Years of MUUS Collection at The Photography Show presented by @AIPADphoto, we're unveiling some of the rare works that will be on view, and revealing the stories behind the photographs.⁠
⁠
Rosalind Fox Solomon began experimenting with photography while on a trip to Japan. Alone, on the outskirts of Tokyo, she began taking pictures of the world around her; when she returned to Tennessee, she set up a darkroom.⁠
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Having recently relocated to Chattanooga from her native Highland Park, Illinois, Solomon used her camera to acquaint herself with her new surroundings and the people who inhabited it, finding the flea and farmer's markets to be rife with scenes to photograph. A year after she took this picture, Solomon began traveling to New York City to study under the tutelage of Lisette Model, the prolific 1940s photographer, who became her mentor. ⁠
⁠
Solomon's early photographs in Tennessee and her interactions with the community there set her down a path that would later see her travel the world to some of the most remote regions, photographing people from a variety of cultures and customs. Though language was often a barrier, Solomon found ways to fully immerse herself into each society, getting unparalleled glimpses inside traditionally closed circles.⁠
⁠
Learn more about Solomon's work in @StephenHilger's essay "Rosalind Fox Solomon and the Photography of Care", and see more images from this series in our 2022 Paris Photo presentation, Rosalind Fox Solomon: The Early Work.
In the lead up to our exhibition Highlights from the Archive: Celebrating 10 Years of MUUS Collection at The Photography Show presented by @AIPADphoto, we're unveiling some of the rare works that will be on view, and revealing the stories behind the photographs.⁠ ⁠ Rosalind Fox Solomon began experimenting with photography while on a trip to Japan. Alone, on the outskirts of Tokyo, she began taking pictures of the world around her; when she returned to Tennessee, she set up a darkroom.⁠ ⁠ Having recently relocated to Chattanooga from her native Highland Park, Illinois, Solomon used her camera to acquaint herself with her new surroundings and the people who inhabited it, finding the flea and farmer's markets to be rife with scenes to photograph. A year after she took this picture, Solomon began traveling to New York City to study under the tutelage of Lisette Model, the prolific 1940s photographer, who became her mentor. ⁠ ⁠ Solomon's early photographs in Tennessee and her interactions with the community there set her down a path that would later see her travel the world to some of the most remote regions, photographing people from a variety of cultures and customs. Though language was often a barrier, Solomon found ways to fully immerse herself into each society, getting unparalleled glimpses inside traditionally closed circles.⁠ ⁠ Learn more about Solomon's work in @StephenHilger's essay "Rosalind Fox Solomon and the Photography of Care", and see more images from this series in our 2022 Paris Photo presentation, Rosalind Fox Solomon: The Early Work.