James Iska

James Iska is the assistant conservator for preparation and framing in the Department of Conservation and Science and is responsible for the care of the photography collection, including the mounting, matting, and framing of photographs for exhibition and storage. His tenure dates to shortly after the inauguration of the current Photography Department. In this role he has witnessed the tremendous growth of the department and its collection in an era where the medium of photography experienced profound changes, including the radical transformation from primarily silver-base to digital processes.

A graduate of the Institute of Design, James is a professional photographer whose work has appeared in a number of publications including The City in a Garden: A Photographic History of Chicago’s Parks and most recently the anthology Chicago: Classic Photographs. Currently he is a participant in the project CPS Lives and is the author of the blog In and About the City: Chicago and Beyond.