Highland Park, Michigan

1941-1942

Harry Callahan

Associated Names
Harry Callahan

Artist, American, 1912 - 1999

This is a photograph of an urban scene featuring a stairway. The image captures a stark exterior view of a building with a long, ascending staircase that cuts diagonally across the center. The dominant colors are various shades of grey, drawing attention to the geometric lines and shapes formed by the staircase and the building behind it. At the top, the building's surface merges with another brick structure. Two vertical light poles are visible, standing on either side of the image, and the street level is marked by a paved road in the foreground, bordered by a strip of dirt and an elevated sidewalk railing. The composition is carefully balanced, highlighting the juxtaposition of architectural elements against the open pavement space, which enhances the sense of depth and structure.
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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    gelatin silver print

  • Credit Line

    Gift of the Callahan Family

  • Dimensions

    image: 8.89 x 11.75 cm (3 1/2 x 4 5/8 in.)
    sheet: 10.16 x 12.7 cm (4 x 5 in.)
    mat (matted, with 2011.95.10 and 2011.95.11): 50.8 x 30.48 cm (20 x 12 in.)

  • Accession Number

    2011.95.12


Artwork history & notes

Provenance

Callahan family, Atlanta, GA; gift to NGA, 2011.

Associated Names

Exhibition History

1996

  • Harry Callahan, National Gallery of Art, Washington; Philadelphia Museum of Art; High Museum of Art, Atlanta; Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago, 1996-1997.

Bibliography

1996

  • Greenough 1996, p. 19.

Inscriptions

signed by artist, lower right, on sheet below image, in graphite: HC; on verso, by artist, upper center in graphite: Harry Callahan Michigan 1941; by later hand, upper left in graphite: 98; center in graphite: Page 84 / 20 cms deep / please leave 1.5 mm black / border

Wikidata ID

Q64154782

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