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Rain Sculpture, Salt Creek Canon, Utah

A work made of albumen print, from the album "geographical & geological explorations & surveys west of the 100th meridian," vol. 1.
CC0 Public Domain Designation

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  • A work made of albumen print, from the album "geographical & geological explorations & surveys west of the 100th meridian," vol. 1.

Date:

1872

Artist:

William H. Bell
American, 1830–1910

About this artwork

In addition to operating his own photographic studio, William H. Bell served as staff photographer for the Army Medical Museum in Washington, D.C., where he documented wounds received by soldiers during the Civil War. In 1872, he joined a surveying expedition led by Lt. George M. Wheeler, part of a larger governmental effort to assess and ultimately exploit the lands and resources of the West. The photographs that Bell took on the expedition were not only used as references for geologists and geographers, but were also sold as stereographs or, like this print, published in albums distributed to members of Congress by the War Department. Wheeler praised photography’s ability to quickly and easily record the details of “convoluted” rock formations like this one, “so suggestive of the folds of heavy drapery.”

Status

Currently Off View

Department

Photography and Media

Artist

William H. Bell

Title

Rain Sculpture, Salt Creek Canon, Utah

Place

United States (Artist's nationality)

Date

Made 1872

Medium

Albumen print, from the album "Geographical & Geological Explorations & Surveys West of the 100th Meridian," vol. 1

Dimensions

Image/paper: 27.6 × 20.4 cm (10 7/8 × 8 1/16 in.); Album page: 50.4 × 40.6 cm (19 7/8 × 16 in.)

Credit Line

Photography Gallery Fund

Reference Number

1959.615.26

IIIF Manifest  The International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF) represents a set of open standards that enables rich access to digital media from libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural institutions around the world.

Learn more.

https://api.artic.edu/api/v1/artworks/195425/manifest.json

Extended information about this artwork

Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email . Information about image downloads and licensing is available here.

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