Title and statement of responsibility area
Title proper
Design Archive photographic collection
General material designation
- Graphic material
Parallel title
Other title information
Title statements of responsibility
Title notes
Level of description
Fonds
Repository
Reference code
2015.005
Edition area
Edition statement
Edition statement of responsibility
Class of material specific details area
Statement of scale (cartographic)
Statement of projection (cartographic)
Statement of coordinates (cartographic)
Statement of scale (architectural)
Issuing jurisdiction and denomination (philatelic)
Dates of creation area
Date(s)
-
1987 - 2003 (Creation)
- Creator
- Burley, Robert
Physical description area
Physical description
6.7 m of photographs and other records. --100 cm CDs.
Publisher's series area
Title proper of publisher's series
Parallel titles of publisher's series
Other title information of publisher's series
Statement of responsibility relating to publisher's series
Numbering within publisher's series
Note on publisher's series
Archival description area
Name of creator
Biographical history
Robert Burley is a photographer and Associate Professor at Ryerson University in Toronto, Ontario. Born in 1957 in Picton, Ontario he obtained a bachelor of arts in Media Studies at Ryerson University in 1980 and went on to complete a Master of Fine Arts, with a specialization in photography at The School of the Art Institute of Chicago in 1986.
Burley established an architectural photography firm, Design Archive, in 1987 and acted as president and principal photographer for the company until 2000. He began teaching at Ryerson University in 1998 and by 2003, he became full time faculty. Here, he helped develop a new graduate program in Photographic Preservation and Collections Management and served as director of the program from 2003-2008 after which he served as director of Photography Studies from 2009 until 2012.
Burley's book, "The Disappearance of Darkness: Photography at the end of the analog era", released by Princeton Architectural Press in 2012 explored the dwindling analog photography industry. The corresponding travelling exhibition, curated by Dr. Gaëlle Morel, was exhibited at the Ryerson Image Centre, The National Galley of Canada, le Musée Nicéphore Niépce and other venues internationally. Burley was also instrumental in the Ryerson University Library and Archives acquisition of the Kodak Canada Corporate Archives and Heritage Collection when photographing Kodak Canada's Mount Denis factory closure in 2005.
Burley’s photographic work is collected and exhibited internationally and he has been the recipient of numerous awards including a Senior Mellon Fellowship in at the Canadian Centre for Architecture in 2010. As an artist his work explores the relationship between nature and cities, architecture and the urban landscape. He is represented by the Stephen Bulger Gallery.
Robert Burley was names a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada's Academy of the Arts and Humanities in 2018. Established in 1883, the Royal Society of Canada (RSC) recognizes the country’s leading scholars, artists and scientists through a competitive, peer-juried process.
Custodial history
Scope and content
Design Archive Inc. was the professional company of photographer Robert Burley, who established it in January 1987 and acted as president until January, 2000. Design Archive Inc. specialized in architectural photography: work is project-based, with project locations including commercial centers, businesses, private residences, and public places of note. Interior and exterior architectural structure is the predominant photographic subject, with landscapes and detailed design highlights, furniture, and machinery filling out the collection. In 2003, Burley accepted a full-time teaching position at Ryerson University’s School of Image Arts and suspended work at Design Archive Inc.
These fonds include photographic materials, including photographic prints, contact sheets, negatives, CDs, and other miscellaneous items that were collected by Design Archive Inc. from 1987 to 2003.
Notes area
Physical condition
Immediate source of acquisition
Arrangement
Photographs and other records are ordered in 16 boxes by date, from 1988 to 2003. 2 Boxes of CDs and 22 posters follow these.
Language of material
Script of material
Location of originals
Availability of other formats
Restrictions on access
Open. Records are available for consultation without restriction.