The Rapids, Below the Suspension Bridge
ca. 1870
Medium
Photography-Photoprint
Classification
Photography-Photoprint
Department
Smithsonian Collection
Museum
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Credit
Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase from the Charles Isaacs Collection made possible in part by the Luisita L. and Franz H. Denghausen Endowment
Accession Number
1994.91.25
Tags
About this artwork
The Niagara suspension bridge spans more than eight hundred feet above one of the wildest parts of the Niagara River. Charles Bierstadt contrasted the solid, stable bridge with the wild chaos of the unruly river. Photographed at river level, the waters seem particularly threatening, adding energy to the scene. In order to create a single balanced image, Bierstadt probably used several negatives: one for the river, another for the bridge, and a third for the dramatic, billowing clouds.