| STANLEY B. BURNS, M.D., is an ophthalmologist and the creator, curator, and proprietor of The Burns Collection, the nation's largest collection of early medical photography and the most important private historic ninteenth century documentary photography collection in the world. Dr. Burns has accumulated over 700,000 images in every imaginable 1 9th century genre. He has created numerous exhibitions, and authored seven books based on his collection, as well as co-authored Masterpieces of Medical Photography with Joel-Peter Witkin. |
| COLLECTING PIONEER Dr. Burns was a pioneer in what museum professionals and art historians now refer to as the Cultural Diversity movement. He recognized in the late 1970's that there was a major void in the preservation and presentation of cultural minority art. Seeking to fill the void, Dr. Burns collected African-American, Latino and Asian photographs. His goal was to make the art world aware of this unappreciated body of material and promote its collection and preservation by institutions. To stimulate this, Dr. Burns presented collections of the images to various institutions. These core collections became the catalyst for yearly public exhibitions and corporate support. |
| MUSEUM DIRECTORSHIP The Bronx Museum of the Arts, one of the leaders of the Cultural Diversity movement, recognized Dr. Burns' special contribution by asking him to join the Board of Trustees. There, as Vice Chairman of the Permanent Collection Committee, he helps direct their collection policy. His goal is to support the premise that American museum collections can be best served by bringing into the mainstream art representing the full spectrum of America's cultural components. The future of artistic preservation must incorporate our cultural diversity not on a quota basis, but in an equal partnership. |
