Lee Friedlander's witty and unblinking view of everyday American life was showcased in this expansive exhibition that gathered more than 350 photographs plus trade and special edition books to trace a five-decade career. Born in 1934, he gained fame in the early 1960s with off-balance street photographs that evoke the complexity of modern life.

Always working in series, Friedlander mines what he calls "the American social landscape," beginning with a layered view of city streets—shop fronts, ads, televisions, and cars. This central theme was supplemented by subjects including portraits, self-portraits, landscapes, still lifes, nudes, and studies of people at work. This body of work stands as one of the major achievements in 20th-century art, combining astute observation and graphic verve to present a compelling vision of contemporary America.