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Ore Loading Docks, Superior, Wisconsin

Margaret Bourke-White

Artwork Details

Ore Loading Docks, Superior, Wisconsin
1929; printed circa 1950s
Margaret Bourke-White
gelatin silver print on paper mounted on masonite
6 ft. 11 in. x 60 ft. (210.82 x 1828.8 cm)
Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Carl R. Withers
2003/2.76

Description

Subject Matter:

This photograph depicts an unloading dock for ore, a structure that was common in the United States in the early part of the twentieth century. This particular site was located in Wisconsin on Lake Superior. Margaret Bourke-White's framing of the subject narrows in on the geometry of the structure, even showing its reflected lines in the water. The top half of the image is filled with the dark holding cells for the ore, each one numbered. Below, the grid of steel that supports these containers is reflected in the still water below. Behind the structure, mounds of material, probably ore, can be seen in large piles.

Physical Description:

This is a photograph of an unloading dock for ore located in Wisconsin on Lake Superior. 

Usage Rights:

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