Subway Portrait

1938-1941

Walker Evans

Associated Names
Walker Evans

Artist, American, 1903 - 1975

This is a photograph of two individuals sitting in a subway car. The photograph is in black and white, capturing a moment where two individuals wearing flat caps are in a subway environment. Behind them is a sign indicating the subway destinations "B WAY 7 AVE. LURAL," "SOUTH FERRY," and "137TH ST BROADWAY." The focus is on the expressions and attire of the people in the picture who appear to be deep in thought or engaged in their world. The lighting and shadows add a moody atmosphere typical of early 20th-century urban street photography.
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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    gelatin silver print

  • Credit Line

    John Wilmerding Fund

  • Dimensions

    sheet: 20.2 x 25.3 cm (7 15/16 x 9 15/16 in.)

  • Accession Number

    1989.11.6

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

Dr. and Mrs. Kent Minichiello, Washington, DC; purchased with donated funds from John Wilmerding by NGA, 1989.

Associated Names

Exhibition History

1991

  • Walker Evans: Subway Portraits and Other Recent Acquisitions, National Gallery of Art, Washington; Addison Gallery of American Art, Andover, 1991-1992.

2000

  • "World Without End: Photography and the 20th Century", Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney, 2000-2001, unnumbered catalogue reproduction.

2003

  • "Cruel and Tender: The Real in the Twentieth Century Photograph", Tate Modern, London; Museum Ludwig, Cologne, 2003-2004.

Bibliography

1991

  • Greenough 1991, pl. 50.

Inscriptions

sideways, center verso in graphite: (doppelt); lower center verso: Evans estate stamp with inventory number VI-128v added in graphite

Wikidata ID

Q64171761

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