Line of men inside a division office of the State Employment Service office at San Francisco, California, waiting to register for unemployment benefits

January 1938

Dorothea Lange

Associated Names
Dorothea Lange

Artist, American, 1895 - 1965

The image shows a line of men standing side by side at a ticket window. The men are wearing suits and overcoats typical of mid-20th century fashion, with wide lapels and dark colors. They all wear hats, mostly fedoras. The light source is strong, casting distinct shadows on the ground. One man holds a piece of paper or booklet, while others have their hands in their pockets or clasped in front. In the background, a ticket booth structure is visible, with a counter and small openings at window level. The floor appears to be made of concrete.
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Artwork overview

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

The Collection of John Dixon, Orinda, CA; (RoseGallery, Santa Monica, CA); Daniel Greenberg and Susan Steinhauser, Van Nuys, CA, 5 March 2011; gift to NGA, 2016.

Associated Names

Bibliography

1994

  • San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. Dorothea Lange: American Photographs. Exh. cat. San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, San Francisco, 1994: pl. 49.

Inscriptions

on verso, by unknown hand, center left in graphite perpendicular and circled: 36014-3; center in graphite: 58 Depression Series; artist's stamp, center in black ink: PHOTOGRAPH BY / DOROTHEA LANGE / 1163 EUCLID AVENUE / BERKELEY / CALIFORNIA; by unknown hand, bottom left in graphite: DL0030; bottom right in graphite: 47J

Wikidata ID

Q64146836

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