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Lewis Hine (1874–1940, US), Italian Immigrants Seeking Lost Luggage, 1905. Gelatin silver print on paper, 5 1/2" x 4 3/8” (14 x 11 cm). Photo © Philadelphia Museum of Art. (PMA-1853) |
It often astounds me
how little we learn from history (and by “we” I mean we human beings: any
culture on this planet!). If you need reminding, I mention the massive
immigrant / refugee crisis of the late 1800s and early 1900s, when hundreds of
thousands of (mostly European) immigrants sought a better life in this country.
Sound familiar? In the late 1800s and early 1900s, Italian and Irish immigrants
were particularly “not wanted,” and many who came, with no money or job skills,
were detained and deported. Artists have always documented these periods. Lewis Hine was a photographer at the turn of
the century. He wanted to bring to Americans’ attention the hardships these
immigrants faced, as well the deplorable conditions in the places they worked.
The flood of immigrants from Europe at the turn of the
century gave rise to overcrowding and poverty in large American cities. Lack of
jobs and housing created terribly overcrowded tenements and homelessness. Lewis
Hine was perhaps the greatest of the photographers concerned with social
reform.
After graduating from Columbia University in 1903, Hine
began teaching at the Ethical Culture School in New York. The school trained
people to help serve the less fortunate and improve their lot in life through
public service. In 1905 Hine’s boss gave him a camera as a teaching aid and to
record school activities. His interest in social reform led almost immediately
to his first documentary series in the same year. He set out to document the
uncaring treatment of immigrants on Ellis Island. This photograph comes from that series.
In 1908 Hine quit teaching to become a photographer and
investigator for the National Child Labor Committee. Between 1908 and 1916 he
traveled widely, documenting child labor abuses. Hine called his photographs “photointerpretations,” because he felt
that they were interpretive. Later scholars, however, consider them
documentary.
Hine used photographs such as this one as lantern slides for
his lectures, as well as to illustrate pamphlets and magazine articles. His photographs
were instrumental in passing child labor laws. As a creator of social
documentary, Hine refined the genre by producing photographs that capture the
dignity of his subjects by the way he framed and lit them. He continued to
photograph workers and laborers until his death. Interest in his work revived
during the 1960s when the issue of social reform again came to the fore.
This photograph documents those who were relegated to the
Baggage and Dormitory Building of Ellis Island. It was basically a detention,
and most likely deportation, center. After the Immigration Act of 1924,
regulations were much stricter on who was allowed into the US. Hopefully, this
family was lucky enough to qualify to enter.
Correlations to Davis
Programs: A Community
Connection: 7.2; Discovering Art History: 14.5; Focus on Photography: 3, 5
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