Dive Bomber over Wake Island
Artist
Charles Kerlee
(American, 1907 - 1981)
Date1943
MediumGelatin silver print
DimensionsImage: 7 3/8 x 9 9/16 inches (18.73 x 24.29 cm)
Sheet: 8 3/16 × 10 inches (20.8 × 25.4 cm)
Sheet: 8 3/16 × 10 inches (20.8 × 25.4 cm)
Credit LineGift of Hallmark Cards, Inc.
Object number2005.27.4176
SignedSigned in artist's hand on sheet verso, left edge, in pencil "TR-6210 / Kerlee"
InscribedOn back of sheet, bottom edge, in pencil "353-1-93"
On View
Not on viewCollections
DescriptionImage of a dive bomber flying in the clouds over Wake Island. Full date October 1943.Gallery LabelCharles Kerlee was a West Coast commercial photographer and instructor when photographer Edward Steichen recruited him for the photographic department of the U. S. Naval Aviation unit. In this photograph, Kerlee records a dawn attack by Douglas Dauntless SBD Dive Bombers. The viewer is placed in the midst of the action. Smaller cameras allowed the production of newly dramatic and spontaneous war images. This “airman’s view” became common during World War II.
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