KALAMAZOO, MI.- The Kalamazoo Institute of Arts presents one of the most iconic portraitists in the history of photography, Yousuf Karsh! Yousuf Karsh: Regarding Heroes is on view from July 9 until September 3, 2011.

Canadian Yousuf Karsh's work helped form our collective visual memory of the most celebrated political and cultural figures of the 20th century, including Albert Einstein, Marian Anderson, Albert Schweitzer, Ernest Hemingway and many others. Karsh's defiant and scowling portrait of Winston Churchill in 1941 became an instant icon of Britain's stand against facism. From that time on, Karsh became internationally renowned and a long list of statesmen, artists, musicians, writers, actors and celebrities sat before his camera.

The 100 works on view are a selection of Karsh's own favorites, now in the collection of the Art Institute of Chicago. This exhibition tour is organized by Curatorial Assistance, Pasadena, California.

Yousuf Karsh admired individuals of high achievement and his notion of what constituted a genuine hero was affected by his optimistic outlook on society, even in the darkest days of World War II. Karsh's defiant and scowling portrait of Winston Churchill became an instant icon of Britain's stand against fascism. While styles in portraiture changed after the war, Karsh's images, with their engaging lighting and indelible character study, consistently display one of the most recognizable, signature styles in portrait photography.

Throughout his long career, Karsh put aside a selection of his own favorite prints of his favorite subjects that are now in the collection of the Art Institute of Chicago. This exhibition contains 100 prints drawn from that collection, accompanied by a catalogue with essay by David Travis, exhibition curator and former Chair and Curator of Photography, The Art Institute of Chicago. This exhibition tour is organized by Curatorial Assistance, Pasadena, California.