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Charles
Sheeler (1883–1965), an American Precisionist artist, was better known
as a painter than as a photographer. He began photographing in 1912 in Bucks
County, Pennsylvania, where he developed an Americana Shaker style. He also
did advertising and publicity photography for Vogue. In 1927 and into the
1930s, Sheeler was commissioned to photograph Ford Motor Works at River
Rouge, work that made his reputation as an architectural photographer. His
photographs are abstract, geometrically precise, and capture an elegance
of proportions. They are, in effect, cultural artifacts as they depict the
industrial might of America. Sheeler often exhibited his paintings and photographs
together.
Charles Sheeler also collaborated with other photographers, including Alfred
Stieglitz, Paul Strand, and Edward Steichen. In 1920 he worked with Paul
Strand on Manhatta, a short expressive film about New York City based
on portions of Whitman's "Leaves of Grass." The six-minute
film spans an imaginary day in the life of New York City, beginning with
footage of Staten Island ferry commuters and culminating with the sun setting
over the Hudson River. It has been described as the first avant-garde film
made in America. Its many brief shots and dramatic camera angles emphasize
New York's photographic nature. Sheeler exhibited Manhatta as both
projected film (as seen in this section) as well as prints made from the
film strips that he used like photographic negatives.
The Photography of Charles Sheeler provides a unique opportunity to explore
Sheeler's innovative technique.
View Manhatta in one of the following formats: |
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