Wall Street (photograph) facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Wall Street
Artist	Paul Strand
Year	1915
Type	Photogravure & Platinum Print
Location	Philadelphia Museum of Art and Whitney Museum of American Art

Wall Street is a famous photograph taken by American artist Paul Strand in 1915. It's a special kind of print called a platinum palladium print. Today, only two original prints exist. One is at the Whitney Museum of American Art (printed after Strand died). The other, along with the original negatives, is at the Philadelphia Museum of Art. This photo was part of an art show called Paul Strand, circa 1916. That show featured photos that helped start a new art style called modernism.

The photograph shows a normal day in the Financial District of Manhattan. You can see workers walking past the J.P. Morgan & Co. building in New York City. The photo gets its name from the famous Wall Street. This picture is well-known because of its sharp lines and strong shapes. These shapes come from the building and the people. They make the photo look almost like an abstract painting. Wall Street is one of Strand's most famous works. It shows his change from a soft, posed style (called pictorialism) to a more real, clear style (called straight photography). Strand started showing subjects as they truly were, not as he arranged them. This photo is one of several that marked the beginning of modernism in photography.

Paul Strand's Journey to Modern Photography

Early Life and Mentors

In 1907, when he was a teenager, Paul Strand went to the Ethical Culture Fieldston School in New York. There, he learned from a photographer named Lewis Hine. Hine was known for his documentary photos. Hine introduced Strand to another important photographer, Alfred Stieglitz. Stieglitz was very important in the art world at that time. He worked hard to make people see photography as a true art form. He even opened his own art gallery, the 291 Gallery, with another artist, Edward Steichen. They wanted to show new, modern art.

Stieglitz and his friends wanted photography to be accepted as art. Stieglitz became a mentor and friend to Strand. They both influenced each other throughout their careers.

From Pictorialism to Straight Photography

At first, Strand was influenced by Stieglitz to try the pictorialist style. In this style, photos often looked like paintings. They had soft focus and showed posed scenes. But around 1915, Strand and Stieglitz wanted to try something new. They started moving towards "straight photography."

Stieglitz encouraged Strand to photograph real-life subjects. He also wanted Strand to change the prints less by hand. Instead, he wanted Strand to use the natural qualities of photography itself. Strand took this idea and created his new style. This style used strong contrasts, clear lines, and focused on shapes. These elements came from how Strand captured real life and movement, not from posing or changing things.

How Wall Street Was Made

Capturing Real Life

The photograph Wall Street shows the 23 Wall Street, which is the J.P. Morgan building in New York City. Strand photographed "people hurrying to work past the banking building." The photo is named after Wall Street, where the building is located. The people and scene in the photo are real. Strand did not arrange or change them. This way of showing real life without changes is an example of straight photography.

In the photo, there isn't one main thing your eye focuses on. The lines in the picture seem to go off the edges of the frame. The large financial building takes up most of the photo. Strand wanted to show the strong shapes made by the building's design. The workers are in the picture, but you can't see their faces. They look very small compared to the huge square shapes of the building. Also, the workers were moving when Strand took the picture, so they look a bit blurry.

A New Look

This style that Strand created in Wall Street was his move towards modern art. It showed that he was no longer using the pictorialist style. Strand photographed the building with very clear and sharp lines. The building is covered in strong shadows and light, a technique called chiaroscuro. It is mostly in shadow, but it still looks very powerful next to the people walking by. The people also have strong contrasts of light and dark. They stand out as dark figures against the sunlight coming from the left side of the photo.

Strand filled the photo with his unique style. The photo is a platinum print. This was a common material for photographers at the time. Strand had a special way of printing his photos. He would make large prints from small negatives. He also left them with a dull, non-shiny finish, which was natural for platinum prints. His printing methods "added a richness to the image." Like other photos from that time, this one is entirely black and white. There is a very strong difference between the black and white parts of the photo. Strand created diagonal shapes that make you focus on the building, not the people.

The Message of Wall Street

A Social Warning

Paul Strand learned about social issues from his teacher, Lewis Hine. So, social change became important to Strand. He often showed these ideas in his art. With Wall Street, he wanted to share a social message. He photographed the faceless people next to the huge financial building to give a warning.

Strand shows "the recently built J.P. Morgan Co. building, whose huge, dark recesses dwarf the passersby." This means the building's massive size and dark areas make the people look tiny. It shows the powerful control of big businesses. The people cannot escape the huge power that this modern building has over their lives. It also shows its power over the future of America. Strand warns us not to be like the small, ant-like people next to this building. This building represents a massive amount of control over the American economy.