36 Kinds of White on 34th Avenue
Artist
Lew Thomas
(American, 1932 - 2021)
Date1972; printed 2014
MediumGelatin silver print
DimensionsImage (each): 4 3/4 × 6 3/4 inches (12.07 × 17.15 cm)
Sheet (each): 5 × 7 inches (12.7 × 17.78 cm)
Image and sheet (overall): 30 × 42 inches (76.2 × 106.68 cm)
Mount: 34 5/8 × 46 7/8 inches (87.96 × 119.05 cm)
Framed: 35 13/16 × 48 1/16 × 2 inches (90.98 × 122.07 × 5.08 cm)
Sheet (each): 5 × 7 inches (12.7 × 17.78 cm)
Image and sheet (overall): 30 × 42 inches (76.2 × 106.68 cm)
Mount: 34 5/8 × 46 7/8 inches (87.96 × 119.05 cm)
Framed: 35 13/16 × 48 1/16 × 2 inches (90.98 × 122.07 × 5.08 cm)
Credit LineGift of the Hall Family Foundation
Object number2015.20.253
SignedSigned on lower right of gallery label, on frame backing board, top, in black pen: "Lew Thomas"
Inscribednone
Markingsnone
Edition/State/Proofed. 2/5 + 2 A.P.s
On View
On viewGallery Location
- L11
Collections
DescriptionThirty six photographs mounted with perfect borders in 6 rows of 6. Images are of "white" objects and include walls, shirts, light bulbs, and other various items.Gallery LabelThis piece is exactly what its title describes—36 individual photographs of white items (or people) photographed on 34th Avenue in San Francisco. Some objects, like a lightbulb and starched button-down shirt, are identifiable, while many are abstract patterns and textures. Prioritizing the overall concept and monochromatic grid structure over the significance of one individual print, Thomas worked against the traditional importance of the singular, meticulously crafted photograph.
“I decided I would make more of an effort to do something unique in photography or drop it all together. This effort was in a sense, the reduction of photography to the level of the idea.”
—Lew Thomas
Copyright© Estate of Lew Thomas
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