Special Exhibitions

A City Seen

The Exhibition  |  The Artists  |  The Catalogue  |  The Programs  |  The George Gund Foundation  |  The Credits

About the Foundation

Based in Cleveland, The George Gund Foundation was established in 1952 as a private, nonprofit institution with the sole purpose of contributing to human well-being and the progress of society. Over the years, program objectives and emphases have been modified to meet changing opportunities and problems, but the Foundation's basic goal of advancing human welfare remains constant.

A Word from the President of the Foundation

The George Gund Foundation's annual report photography collection consists of twelve portfolios of black-and-white images created by some of this country's finest photographers. This collection, displayed in A City Seen, is a remarkable and diverse array of photos of Cleveland and Northeast Ohio. These 148 images present a coherent and thought- provoking portrait of the region as well as highlight issues that have concerned this Foundation since it was established by my father in 1952.

A City Seen is not a chamber of commerce marketing tool, nor does it feature the usual description of foundation largesse via artful portraits of happy grantees and successfully completed projects. Instead, it is an attempt to describe our work through the eyes of twelve fine art photographers-to let their vision of this community reflect on the Foundation's agenda in ways less literal and, hopefully, more powerful than that of the more typical foundation annual report.

This publication, and the accompanying exhibition at the Cleveland Museum of Art, seemed an appropriate and meaningful way to celebrate The George Gund Foundation's 50th anniversary. The Foundation has made more than $380 million in grants over the past five decades to a wide range of organizations in education, human services, the environment, the arts, civic affairs, and economic development, and those areas of Foundation interest are powerfully addressed in these photographs. At the conclusion of the exhibition, the Foundation will donate the collection of photographs in A City Seen to the Cleveland Museum of Art as a gift to the Greater Cleveland community to mark our milestone anniversary.

The trustees of the Foundation are proud and pleased to be associated with this publication. I want to thank David Bergholz, executive director of the Foundation, and Mark Schwartz of Nesnadny + Schwartz, who conceived and organized this approach and led the effort over these twelve years. Special thanks go to Deena Epstein who served as chief writer and editor of each report. Michelle Moehler was the lead designer for the books and brought a spirit of invention and creative energy to every aspect of her exemplary work. I especially want to thank the twelve photographers-Michael Book, Lois Conner, Judith Joy Ross, Dawoud Bey, Linda Butler, Lee Friedlander, Gregory Conniff, Frank Gohlke, Larry Fink, Douglas Lucak, Nicholas Nixon, and Barbara Bosworth-for their unique and ennobling contribution to each of the annual reports.

Finally, my deepest gratitude goes to Katharine Lee Reid, Tom Hinson and, most especially, to John Szarkowski, for their comments contained in this book.

GEOFFREY GUND
President and Trustee
The George Gund Foundation