Handlanger (Handyman)
1928, printed c. 1950
Image not available — this artwork is under copyright
View on museum website →Medium
gelatin silver print
Dimensions
sheet (trimmed to image): 50.4 x 37.5 cm (19 13/16 x 14 3/4 in.)
Classification
Photograph
Department
CPH
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Gift of Gerhard and Christine Sander, in Honor of the 50th Anniversary of the National Gallery of Art
Accession Number
1990.120.1
Art Historical Context
**Handlanger (Hand)**, a gelatin silver print by August Sander from 1928 (printed around 1950), captures essence of everyday labor in-era Germany. Sander, a pioneering German photographer, portrayed this unnamed handyman—likely an odd-job worker—with unflinching directness, his tools and weathered attire speaking to a life of manual toil. Measuring 50.4 x 37.5 cm, the trimmed image exemplifies Sander's commitment to raw, unadorned realism. Part of Sander's monumental project *People of the 20th Century*, this photograph belongs to his typological series documenting German society's diverse cl...