Julius Shulman - Biography

Biography

In 1987, the Shulman House was designated a Cultural Heritage Monument by the city of Los Angeles.

In 2000 Julius Shulman gave up retirement to begin working with business partner Juergen Nogai.

The Getty Research Institute held a 2005–2006 exhibition of Shulman's prints entitled "Julius Shulman, Modernity and the Metropolis". The exhibition included sections entitled "Framing the California Lifestyle," "Promoting the Power of Modern Architecture," "The Tools of an Innovator" and "The Development of a Metropolis". The exhibition traveled to the National Building Museum and to the Art Institute of Chicago.

Julius Shulman and Juergen Nogai have had exhibitions at the Design and Architecture Museum in Frankfurt, Germany, in fall 2005 as well as an exhibition at the Barnsdall Municipal Gallery in Los Angeles 2006, Craig Krull Gallery Bergamot station, Los Angeles, October 2007, and another show in spring 2009. An exhibition of their work is also scheduled in Mannheim, Germany, in 2010.

On Dec. 16, 2007, Shulman attended a showing of his architectural photography at the Los Angeles Public Library. Organized by the Getty Research Institute, the exhibit included 150 photographs documenting architectural changes in Los Angeles over the past 80 years. This progression includes the redevelopment of Bunker Hill, the growth of Century City, the avant-garde architectural designs in Los Angeles such as Watts Towers, Grauman's Chinese Theatre and the Getty Villa, as well as the growth of Wilshire Boulevard. The exhibition features the industrial engines at the Port of Los Angeles and the Los Angeles International Airport that helped fuel the growth of Los Angeles. Also featured, diverse residential fabric from Echo Park to South Los Angeles. The exhibit spotlighted Shulman's unique role in capturing and promoting innovative, sleek case study houses as well as the contrasting tract housing developments with repeated floor plans.

In February 2008, the Palm Springs Art Museum presented "Julius Shulman: Palm Springs," guest curated by Michael Stern. Containing more than 200 objects, it is the largest Julius Shulman exhibition ever presented to date. In addition to photographs and renderings, illustrations and models of many of the buildings Shulman photographed were presented to complement his extensive documentation of a place that was so inspirational to him. Rizzoli published the accompanying catalog, "Julius Shulman: Palm Springs." Additionally, a documentary DVD was produced in conjunction with the exhibition "Julius Shulman: Desert Modern."

Selected Shulman works were included in the Annenberg Space for Photography's inaugural exhibit, L8S ANG3LES. One of his last commissioned works was of the Space, which opened in March, 2009, with Shulman in attendance.

Shulman's last exhibit at Craig Krull Gallery was scheduled for July 4 to August 8, 2009, but Shulman's death one week into the show caused it to be extended by two weeks. Shulman's daughter Judy Shulman McKee—along with Krull, Nogai, Benedikt Taschen and Wim de Wit—spoke at the Getty Center on Sunday, September 20, 2009 during a memorial to celebrate the life of Julius Shulman. Craig Krull Gallery has been Shulman's exclusive gallery representation since 1991 and will be opening a major survey of Shulman's work in September 2011.