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The Language of Vision: Early Twentieth-Century Photography

August 17, 2018 to January 13, 2019 Jepson Center
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Helen Levitt (American, 1913-2009); Brooklyn, New York, c. 1940; gelatin silver print; image: 7 1/8 x 10 7/8 inches; sheet: 10 7/8 x 13 15/16 inches; gift of Philip Perkis; 1998.13.3; © Film Documents LLC.
Walker Evans, Tenant Farmer's Wife
Walker Evans (American, 1903-1975); Tenant Farmer's Wife, Alabama, 1936, printed 1971; gelatin silver print; 10 x 8 inches; museum purchase with funds provided by the Gari Melchers Collectors' Society, 2018.4. © Walker Evans Archive, The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

The Language of Vision: Early Twentieth-Century Photography thematically links four photographers from Telfair Museums’ permanent collection who made significant advances in the medium of photography before 1945: Ralph Steiner (American, 1899–1986), Manuel Álvarez Bravo (Mexican, 1902–2002), Walker Evans (American, 1903–1975), and Helen Levitt (American, 1913–2009).

At the turn of the 20th century, most photography was overly-romanticized, staged, or fulfilled a strictly documentary function. Connected historically and socially, the four artists in this exhibition instead employed straight photography, engaging with the camera’s technical capacity to capture what was in front of them without heavy manipulation in the darkroom.

As cameras became more portable during their lifetimes, these photographers literally took to the streets to document modern life on film. While objectively depicting the people and places of their day, they also created images born of their own artistic insight, distinguished by subject matter, cropping, vantage point, lighting, and the types of cameras they used.

Although these artists photographed during much of the 20th century, their work from the 1920s through ’40s elevated the status of photography as a whole. All four demonstrated that while mechanically made, their photographs reflected the subtle expressiveness of the individual, a pivotal development in the genre of photography as a distinct visual art form.

Their ability to capture the contemporary moment created timeless images that still reveal insights about the human condition today.

  • View image 1 in lightbox:
    Helen Levitt; Brooklyn, New York

    Helen Levitt (American, 1913-2009); Brooklyn, New York, c. 1940; gelatin silver print; image: 7 1/8 x 10 7/8 inches; sheet: 10 7/8 x 13 15/16 inches; gift of Philip Perkis; 1998.13.3; © Film Documents LLC.

  • View image 2 in lightbox:
    Helen Levitt, New York

    Helen Levitt (American, 1913-2009); New York, c. 1940; gelatin silver print on paper; 9 1/8 x 6 ½ inches; Telfair Museums, Gift of Philip Perkis, 1998.13.1

  • View image 3 in lightbox:
    Helen Levitt, New York

    Helen Levitt (American, 1913-2009); New York, c. 1940; gelatin silver print on paper; 6 ¾ x 10 1/16 inches; Telfair Museums, Gift of Mrs. Robert O. Levitt, 1999.8.1

  • View image 4 in lightbox:
    Ralph Steiner, Untitled, 1929

    Ralph Steiner (American, 1899-1986); Untitled, 1929 (negative), 1980 (print); gelatin silver print; 15/16 x 10 inches; gift of Dr. Marvin and Norma Rappaport, 2017.9.8

  • View image 5 in lightbox:
    Ralph Steiner, Untitled (Self-Portrait)

    Ralph Steiner (American, 1899-1986); Untitled (Self-portrait), 1929 (negative), 1980 (print); gelatin silver print; 10 x 8 inches; gift of Dr. Marvin and Norma Rappaport, 2017.9.4.

  • View image 6 in lightbox:
    Ralph Steiner, Untitled (Lexington Avenue)

    Ralph Steiner (American, 1899-1986); Untitled (Lexington Avenue), 1924 (negative), 1980 (print); gelatin silver print; 4 x 5 inches; gift of Dr. Marvin and Norma Rappaport, 2017.9.6

  • View image 7 in lightbox:
    Manuel Álvarez Bravo, Un Pez que Llaman Sierra

    Manuel Álvarez Bravo (Mexican, 1902-2002); Un Pez que Llaman Sierra (A Fish Called Saw), 1942; printed 1977; gelatin silver print; 10 x 8 inches; gift of Mr. and Mrs. Benjamin Oxnard Jr., 2004.13.3.11

  • view more images
    Manuel Álvarez Bravo, Señor de Papantla

    Manuel Álvarez Bravo (Mexican, 1902-2002); Señor de Papantla (The Man from Papantla), 1934-1935; printed 1977; gelatin silver print; 10 x 8 inches; Telfair Museums, Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Benjamin Oxnard Jr., 2004.13.3.8

  • Walker Evans (American, 1903-1975); Untitled (Men on Sidewalk, New York City), 1934; vintage gelatin silver print; 5 1/4 × 6 1/2 inches; Telfair Museums, Gift of Mrs. Robert O. Levitt, 2002.3.5

  • Walker Evans (American, 1903-1975); Tenant Farmer's Wife, Alabama, 1936, printed 1971; gelatin silver print; 10 x 8 inches; museum purchase with funds provided by the Gari Melchers Collectors' Society, 2018.4. © Walker Evans Archive, The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Take a Look Inside the Gallery

This video is a peek inside the gallery at the Jepson Center. There are no spoken words in this video, only background music.

This exhibition is organized by Telfair Museums and curated by Erin Dunn, Assistant Curator at Telfair Museums. This exhibition is made possible through the generous support of Mrs. Robert O. Levitt.

Telfair Museums