Photobooks | McGINLEY, Ryan

Personal statement by Ryan McGINLEY

"My work is also a response to the death of my brother, who passed away from AIDS when I was 17 years old. It's an attempt to celebrate life." (© Ryna McGINLEY)

About US American photographer, Ryan McGINLEY (b.1977, in Ramsey, New Jersey)

Ryan McGINLEY studied graphic design at Parsons School of Design. In the 1990s, he began taking Polaroids of his friends and acquaintances from the skateboarding, sprayer, and gay scenes. He also formed what New York Magazine called a 'Bowery School' artistic circle of friends, which included McGINLEY, Dash SNOW and Dan Colen. After graduating in 2000, he organized his first solo exhibition, 'The Kids are Alright'. After his 2002 handmade photo book of 'The Kids are Alright' caused a stir in the art world, an exhibition curated by Sylvia Wolf at the Whitney Museum of American Art followed in 2003. At 25, he was the youngest artist at the time to have a solo exhibition at the Whitney. That same year, he was named Photographer of the Year by American Photo Magazine.
After 2003, the snapshots of his friends became increasingly carefully arranged productions. In the summers of 2005 and 2006, he traveled with friends throughout the U.S. and photographed them, often nude, at campgrounds, motels, and in nature. Similarly, in the summer of 2007, he created his project 'I Know Where the Summer Goes', inspired by the amateur photos in nudist magazines of the 1960s. In parallel, from 2004 - 2007 he worked on his project 'Irregular Regulars', for which he photographed visitors at dozens of Morrissey concerts.

Photo books by as well as about the work of Ryan McGINLEY

'The Kids Were Alright' (2002, 2017); 'Sun and Health' (2006); 'Moonmilk' (2009); 'Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere' (2010); 'Life Adjustment Center' (2011); 'You and I' (2011); 'Whistle for the Wind' (2012), 'Mirror Mirror' (2018)

Prizes and Awards

2003: 'Photographer of the Year', American Photo Magazine;
2007: 'ICP Infinity Award: Young Photographer', International Center of Photography, New york;
2011: Gold Medal: Society of Publication Designers, für 'M.I.A. Takes to the Streets', in: The New York Times Magazine, May 30th, 2010;

Short films

2010: 'Friends Forever'; 'Entrance Romance'; 'Pringle of Scotland. Spring Summer 2010';
2012: 'Beautiful Rebels'; 'Varúð' (for Sigur Rós); 'The Virgins: Prima Materia';
2013: 'Mind of its own' (for Mercedes-Benz);
2015: '#the2ofus - ck2' (for Calvin Klein);

Single exhibitions

2000: 'The Kids are Alright', 420 W. B'way, New York City;
2002: 'Photographien', Galerie Giti Nourbakhsch, Berlin; MC Magma, Milan;
2003: 'Bailey Fine Arts', Toronto; 'The Kids Are Alright', The Whitney Museum of American Art; 'Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, The Red Eye Gallery;
2004: University of the Arts, Philadelphia; 'New Photographs', P.S. 1 Contemporary Art Center / The Museum of Modern Art, New York
2005: Les Rencontres Internationales de la Photographie
Arles; 'Laboratorio 987: Entre Nosotros', Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Castilla y León, Spain;
2006: 'Sun and Health', Galerie du Jour, Agnes B, Paris; Frieze 2006;
2007: 'Irregular Regulars', 83 Grand St, New York;
2008: 'I Know Where the Summer Goes', 83 Grand St, New York; 'Spring and by Summer Fall', Ratio 3, San Francisco;
2009: 'Moonmilk', Alison Jacques, London;
2010: 'Crooked Aisles', The Breeder, Athens; 'Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere', 83 Grand St, New York; 'Life Adjustment Center',
Ratio 3, San Francisco;
2011: 'Somewhere Place', Gabriel Rolt, Amsterdam; 'Wandering Comma', Alison Jacques, London;
2012: 'Grids' & 'Animals', 83 Grand St, New York; 'Reach Out, I’m Right Here', Tomio Koyama Gallery, Tokyo; Art Basel;
2013: 'Running Water, What Are You Running From?', Bischoff Projects, Frankfurt; Frieze, New York; 'Yearbook', Ratio 3, San Francisco; 'Magic Magnifier', Daelim Museum, Seoul; 'Body Loud', Perrotin, Paris; 'Vertical Color of Sound', Perrotin, Hong Kong;
2014: 'Yearbook', 83 Grand St, New York;
2015: 'Photographs 1999-2015', Kunsthal KAdE, Amsersfoort, The Netherlands; Art Basel; 'Winter', 306 Windward (Bungalow), Venice Beach; 'Fall', 83 Grand St, New York;
2016: 'Yearbook', La Termica, Spain; 'The Four Seasons', GAMeC, Galleria d'Arte Moderna e Contemporanea, Italy;
2017: The Kids Were Alright', MCA, Denver; 'Early', 83 Grand St, New York;
2018: 'Paradiso', Ratio 3, San Francisco; 'My NY', Tomio Koyama Gallery, Tokyo; 'The Spirit of Pride', Soft Opening, London; 'Mirror, Mirror', 83 Grand St, New York;
2019: 'Yearbook', ARoS Aarhus Art Museum, Denmark;
2020: 'Pretty Free', Marlborough Contemporary, London;

McGINLEY, Ryan