STEPHEN R. DAVIS:

An Inventory of His Photographs of Rural Minnesota and the Twin Cities at the Minnesota Historical Society

Sound and Visual Collection

OVERVIEW


	Creator:	Davis, Stephen R., photographer.
	Title:	Rural Minnesota and the Twin Cities photograph collection.
	Dates:	[1978-1983]
	Abstract:	Collection includes two series of images documenting Minnesota in the late 1970s to early 1980s. The rural area series captured in many different counties contains views of fields, grain elevators, roads, water towers, and people. The second series was captured in the Twin Cities Metro Area and includes views of people and buildings around the North End and downtown areas of Saint Paul, tailgating at Metropolitan Stadium in Bloomington, the High Bridge Power Plant, the Minnesota State Fair, Koppers Coke Site, Feist Pet Cemetery, and the St. Paul Farmers' Market.
	Quantity:	50 photographs : black and white ; 8.5 x 11 inches. 82 photographs : black and white ; 13 x 19 inches.
	Location:	II.68 : See Detailed Description for shelf locations.

Stephen Davis is a historian and documentary photographer who spent some of his early career in photography in Minnesota. During the late 1970s to early 1980s, he lived in the Twin Cities and held two photography related positions. First, he was a Comprehensive Employment and Training Act (CETA) artist for Community Programs in the Arts (COMPAS). Incorporated in 1974, COMPAS is a St. Paul art agency located in the Landmark Center. Davis worked on a number of creative projects for COMPAS including the Photo Bus, displaying photographs from St. Paul's history. He also shot promotional photographs of COMPAS activities for the Saint Paul History Theater. Second, Davis worked at Film in the Cities (FITC), a media art center located on University Avenue which later dissolved and was succeeded by the Midwest Media Arts Access Center. He worked closely with Jim Dozier who ran the photography program at the time. Davis helped organize classes and then would often attend them to develop his photography skills, including the summer workshops which would bring in nationally known photographers such as Judy Dater, Larry Fink, and Garry Winogrand.

Davis's work in the Twin Cities was eclectic. Living in a modest rental house on Albermarle Street in the North End district, north of the State Capitol, he spent considerable time walking the streets shooting landscapes and portraits. Davis also photographed extensively at the Minnesota State Fair and the Metropolitan Stadium in Bloomington, including attending Camera Day for the Minnesota Twins and tailgate parties for the Minnesota Kicks.

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ARRANGEMENT

Original order and series supplied by the photographer.

Titles supplied by photographer unless noted by square brackets.

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ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION

Availability:

The collection is open for research use.

Preferred Citation:

[Indicate the cited item and/or series here]. Davis, Stephen R., Rural Minnesota and the Twin Cities Photograph Collection. Minnesota Historical Society.

See the Chicago Manual of Style for additional examples.

Accession Information:

Accession number: AV2017.30

Processing Information:

Processed by: Karen Obermeyer-Kolb, April 2017

Catalog ID number: 008797287

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DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The photographs in this collection were made with either a Mamiya Twins-Lens Reflex camera which produced high-quality, square 2.25 x 2.25 inch negatives or a Nikon F2 with Nikkor lenses which produced 35mm negatives. The photographer has scanned and printed the 35mm negatives to 8.5 x 11 inch paper and the 2.25 x 2.25 inch negatives to 13 x 19 inch paper.

The Minnesota Historical Society does not retain the negatives, only the prints and digital versions.

RURAL MINNESOTA

Location

II.68.1

Lester Prairie, McLeod County, May 1981. 19 x 13 inches.