The Mines Today By Cables (Electric Driven). This Is The Power Room Of A Pennsylvania Coal Mine
Medium
Gelatin silver print
Dimensions
Image: 11.7 × 16.8 cm (4 5/8 × 6 5/8 in.); Paper: 12.5 × 17.7 cm (4 15/16 × 7 in.)
Classification
gelatin silver (developing-out-paper) pr
Department
Photography and Media
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
23271
Rights
Public Domain
Art Historical Context
Lewis Wickes Hine’s 1930 gelatin silver print captures the electrified heart of a Pennsylvania coal mine at a moment of industrial transformation. Known for his pioneering social documentary photography, Hine used the camera as an instrument of reform, first exposing child labor and later celebrating the skill and dignity of adult workers who powered America’s factories, mills, and mines. The image’s long original title underscores Hine’s interest in technological progress: cables and electric motors now drove operations once dependent on steam or muscle. Printed on developing-out paper, the ...
About the Artist
Lewis Wickes Hine · 1874–1940
Lewis Wickes Hine (1874–1940) was born on September 26 in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, to Douglas and Sarah Hine, who ran a coffeehouse and restaurant on Main Street. After his father's accidental death from a self-inflicted gunshot wound around 1892, the teenage Hine supported his widowed mother and sisters through various jobs while pursuing education. He attended Oshkosh Normal School, where he met ment...