Ruth Bernhard Archive, Princeton University Art Museum. © Trustees of Princeton University
On view
Cross-Collections Gallery
Straws,
1930
Ruth Bernhard, 1905–2006; born Berlin, Germany; died San Francisco, CA
2008-391
Bernhard’s still lifes reveal a fascination with the everyday. According to the artist, “Looking at everything as if for the first time reveals the commonplace to be utterly incredible.” This sense of wonder may also have been a reaction to changing societal conditions, for these 1930s photographs of industrially produced commodities—whether straws, pins, or Life Savers—picture a world increasingly overtaken by stuff. Characterized by patterning and repetition, Bernhard’s arrangements seem to emerge from the seriality of mass production. Her formal play with light and shadow suggests a phantasmagoric ballet of the assembly line.
Information
Title
Straws
Dates
1930
Maker
Medium
Gelatin silver print
Dimensions
34 × 27 cm (13 3/8 × 10 5/8 in.)
mount: 50.8 x 40.7 cm. (20 x 16 in.)
Credit Line
Bequest of Ruth Bernhard
Object Number
2008-391
Place Made
North America, United States
Signatures
signed on mount lower right below image
Inscription
Signed on mount, below image lower right: Ruth Bernhard
Titled, dated, and signed in graphite, verso: Straws, 1930 / Ruth Bernhard
Marks/Labels/Seals
Stamped: © Ruth Bernhard / All Rights Reserved
Culture
Techniques
Subject
The artist; bequeathed to the Princeton University Art Museum, 2008.
