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Charles Sheeler, American, 1883-1965
Criss-Crossed Conveyors--Ford Plant, 1927
Gelatin silver print
Image: 9 1/2 x 7 1/2 inches (24.13 x 19.05 cm)
Framed: 22 1/4 x 18 1/4 inches (56.52 x 46.36 cm)
Gift of Hallmark Cards, Inc., 2005.27.310
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Location: Not on view
Sheeler’s work in both painting and photography was based on his interest in the logic of structure--the way in which human values and ideas are expressed in the utilitarian forms of architecture. Sheeler’s most memorable photographic project was his 1927 series at the Ford Motor Company plant outside Detroit, the most advanced industrial operation in the world. Sheeler spent six weeks exploring the site before making 32 photographs. These images convey the vast size and precision of the plant’s operation, while functioning as majestic aesthetic statements. Here, Sheeler records aerial coal and coke conveyor lines crossing in midair, the plant’ water tanks just behind them and the towering smokestacks of Power House No. 1 in the distance. The result is an astonishing study of overlapping permutations of geometric and architectonic form: a potent expression of the era’s fascination for the industrial sublime.
