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New York City

Garry Winogrand

Artwork Details

New York City
1971; printed 1978
Garry Winogrand
gelatin silver print on paper
9 1/16 in x 13 7/16 in (23.02 cm x 34.13 cm)
Gift of Stanley T. Lesser, A.B. 1951, J.D. 1953
1981/2.65.8

Description

Living in the capital of the nation’s broadcast media, New Yorkers are inundated with media coverage of all newsmaking occurrences, including protests and rallys. This depiction of a Women’s Liberation march includes a woman being interviewed for the sound bite that will appear on the evening news. Photographers, sign-holders, and others merely curious cluster around the speaker at the lower right and add to the confusion and congestion attendant to any newsworthy event.
Carole McNamara, Assistant Director for Collections & Exhibitions
on the occasion of the exhibition New York Observed: The Mythology of the City
(July 13 – September 22, 2003)

Subject Matter:

This photograph depicts a scene at a political demonstration. A crowd of people stand tightly packed together and looking in different directions. In the center of the frame, a reporter leans forward, holding a long microphone towards a woman gesticulating with her hands. Both the reporter and his interviewee appear to be in mid-sentence. The woman’s shirt bears the words, “Women’s Liberation,” and the symbol for female with an equal sign in its middle. Held at a vertical angle over the reporters head is a hand-written sign bearing minsogynst religious quotes. A video camera’s lens juts into the frame from the left. The wide angle of the camera’s lens causes some distortion at the far sides of the image, appearing to stretch the features of the onlookers. This effect serves to heighten the sense of being immersed in the crowd, as well as reflects the cultural turbulence of the time.

Physical Description:

This photograph depicts a scene at a crowded political demonstration. A reporter stands at the center of the frame and is interviewing a woman. Behind them are handmade picket signs.

Usage Rights:

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