Words on Pictures

Lewis Wickes Hine: Pictures as Documents  Stamped: Photo file: Photographs by Lewis W. Hine          Source: #8446 Subjects: New York City – Tenements Caption: “The doorway to the stables has become the entrance to the rear tenements. The shed at right is used as a horse’s stall. The covered drive way is used as a playground." Locale: Mayer’s Place, New York City Date: 1901s      Stamped: Franziska Gay Schacht Collection. NYPL Picture Collection - Reference File Lewis Wickes Hine (1905-1938) was the perfect kind of photographer for the purposes of documentation. While his intentions were largely one of advocating for social reform, his ability to construct his compositions and pack them with information is what made his work of interest to the New York Public Library's Picture Collection.  In a masterly use of flash Hine encapsulates all manner of subject matter in crisp detail. In addition to housing conditions and children’s welfare, c

  Words on Pictures: Romana and the New York Public Library’s Picture Collection .  edited by Anthony T. Troncale. New York:  Photo Verso Publications, LLC , 2020.    ISBN 978-1-7346409-0-8 (hardcover)   Identifiers ISBN    978-1-7346409-1-5 (ebook) The history of the use of the visual materials and photography in the arts, the sciences and in commerce cannot be told without Romana Javitz (1903-1980) and the story of her 40-year career as the supervisor of the New York Public Library’s Picture Collection.  The New York Public Library’s Picture Collection has been circulating photographs, clippings, prints and postcards to the public for over 105 years. It is a free picture reference service used by many important industries that need visual resources for their work.  Still operating out of t he Stephen A. Schwarzman Building at 42 nd  Street,   the Picture Collection remains an important resource for teachers and historians, designers and illustrators, as well as artists and photo