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Wettach Photography Exhibit Opens November 17 at State Historical Building
Farm
Life in Iowa: Photographs by A.M. Wettach, an exhibition organized by the
University of Iowa Museum of Art and containing photographs owned by the State
Historical Society of Iowa, will open at the State Historical Building, 600 E.
Locust, Thursday, November 17.
The exhibition features 52 black-and-white photographs taken by A.M. “Pete”
Wettach (1901-1976) from 1925 to 1960, 35 of the most revolutionary years for
farming as a 
way
of life in Iowa. The exhibition is a reflection on the past generation of Iowa
farmers and the consequences of the philosophies and events that affected their
lives.
The exhibition was curated by Kathleen A. Edwards, curator of prints, drawings,
photographs and new media at the UI Museum of Art. 
The
large-format photographs were printed by Steven Tatum, UI Museum of Art photographer,
from Wettach’s original negatives. More than 10,000 negatives taken by Wettach
are housed at the State Historical Society of Iowa offices in Iowa City. Farm
Life in Iowa is funded by the General Education Fund of the University of Iowa
through the Office of the Provost.
“For Iowans, living in a state where 90 percent of the land is still farmed, Wettach’s photographs are invaluable historic records and part of a common visual memory linking the past to the present,” Simmons said.
