Hardware Store
Berenice Abbott
Description
Recent Acquisitions: Curators Choice Part I, November 12, 2011-March 18, 2012
Berenice Abbott
United States, 1898–1991
Hardware Store, 316-318 Bowery at Bleeker Street,
New York from Changing New York
1938
Gelatin silver print
Gift of Larry and Maxine Snider
Subject Matter:
In this frontal view of a West Village hardware store, Berenice Abbott aligned the picture frame with the rectangular form of the picture window and display of goods that spill on to the sidewalk. The shop sign that runs along the upper margin of the image is echoed by the strip of sidewalk along the bottom, further compressing the individual tools into a wall of undifferentiated objects, sorted by type. This close cropping flattens the perception of depth of the image, giving these everyday consumer goods a decorative rythm that belies their utilitarian function.
Physical Description:
View of a hardware store display, with an assortment of tools and other objects in the window and displayed on the sidewalk in front of the store.
Usage Rights:
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