[Automobile Accident, San Francisco]
Newspapers often relied on photo illustration to circumvent the limitations of photography as a method of reporting. It was easy enough for news photographers to cover scheduled events—state visits, political speeches and rallies—but sudden calamities often occurred when no cameras were present. In such cases, editors at the San Francisco Examiner would create a “photo-diagram”—a photograph of the crime or accident scene, usually taken after the fact, with a diagrammatic reconstruction of the event drawn onto the picture by hand. Here, arrows and numbered circles trace the careening path of a stolen car down a hilly street in San Francisco. Black crosses mark the spots where the halves of the victim’s body landed.
Artwork Details
- Title: [Automobile Accident, San Francisco]
- Artist: Unknown (American)
- Date: 1953
- Medium: Gelatin silver print with applied media
- Dimensions: Image: 21.5 x 29 cm (8 7/16 x 11 7/16 in.)
Frame: 40.6 x 50.8 cm (16 x 20 in.) - Classification: Photographs
- Credit Line: Purchase, The Horace W. Goldsmith Foundation Gift, through Joyce and Robert Menschel, 2008
- Object Number: 2008.58
- Curatorial Department: Photographs
More Artwork
Related Content
Publications
Books, guides, and catalogues published by The Met.
Research Resources
The Met provides unparalleled resources for research and welcomes an international community of students and scholars. The Met's Open Access API is where creators and researchers can connect to the The Met collection. Open Access data and public domain images are available for unrestricted commercial and noncommercial use without permission or fee.
To request images under copyright and other restrictions, please use this Image Request form.
Feedback
We continue to research and examine historical and cultural context for objects in The Met collection. If you have comments or questions about this object record, please contact us using the form below. The Museum looks forward to receiving your comments.