Front / Recto
- Title Iron Hand, Essen (Eiserne Hand, Essen)
- Negative Date 1929
- Print Date 1929–39
- Medium Gelatin silver print
- Dimensions Image 14 13/16 x 10 3/4" (37.6 x 27.3 cm)Sheet 15 11/16 × 11 3/4" (39.8 × 29.8 cm)
- Place Taken Essen
- Credit Line Thomas Walther Collection. Gift of Shirley C. Burden, by exchange
- MoMA Accession Number 1818.2001
- Copyright © 2015 / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York / VG Bild-Kunst, Germany
Back / Verso
- Mount Type No mount - evidence previous mount
- Marks and Inscriptions Inscribed in pencil on sheet recto, bottom right: F 96. Inscribed in pencil on sheet verso, top left: F 96.
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Provenance
The artist. Sold through Schoppmann & Partner, Düsseldorf, to Thomas Walther, May 4, 1985 [1] or June 27, 1987 [2]; purchased by The Museum of Modern Art, New York, 2001.
[1] MacGill/Walther 2000, p. 29; and Jürgen Wilde, letter to Audrey Sands, October 1, 2013.
[2] MacGill/Walther 2000, p. 29; and Schoppmann & Partner invoice, June 27, 1987.
Surface
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Retouch Detail
Detail showing etching. The area of detail is 4 x 5 mm. Department of Conservation, MoMA - Surface Sheen Semireflective
- Techniques Enlargement Retouching (reductive)
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PTM
Detail view of the recto of the artwork made using reflectance transformation imaging (RTI) software, which exaggerates subtle surface details and renders the features of the artwork plainly visible. Department of Conservation, MoMA -
Micro-raking
Raking-light close-up image, as shot. Area of detail is 6.7 x 6.7 mm. Department of Conservation, MoMA
Raking-light close-up image, processed. Processing included removal of color, equalization of the histogram, and sharpening, all designed to enhance visual comparison. Department of Conservation, MoMA
Paper Material
- Format Metric
- Weight Double weight
- Thickness (mm) 0.36
- UV Fluorescence Recto negative Verso negative
- Fiber Analysis Softwood bleached sulfite 82% Hardwood bleached sulfite 3% Rag 12% Bast 4%
- Material Techniques Developing-out paper Baryta-less paper
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XRF
This work was determined to be a gelatin silver print via X-ray fluorescence (XRF) spectrometry.
The following elements have been positively identified in the work, through XRF readings taken from its recto and verso (or from the mount, where the verso was not accessible):
- Recto: Al, Si, P, S, K, Ca, Cr, Fe, Zn, Sr, Ag, Ba
- Verso: Al, Si, P, S, K, Ca, Cr, Fe, Zn, Sr, Ba
The graphs below show XRF spectra for three areas on the print: two of the recto—from areas of maximum and minimum image density (Dmax and Dmin)—and one of the verso or mount. The background spectrum represents the contribution of the XRF instrument itself. The first graph shows elements identified through the presence of their characteristic peaks in the lower energy range (0 to 8 keV). The second graph shows elements identified through the presence of their characteristic peaks in the higher energy range (8 to 40 keV).
Areas examined: Recto (Dmax: black; Dmin: green), Verso or Mount (blue), Background (red)
Elements identified: Al, Si, P, S, K, Ca, Cr, Ag, Ba
Areas examined: Recto (Dmax: black; Dmin: green), Verso or Mount (blue), Background (red)
Elements identified: Fe, Zn, Sr, Ag
In Context
Related Images
Albert Renger-Patzsch. Street in Essen (Strasse in Essen am Bahnhof). 1930. Gelatin silver print, 15 3/16 x 11 3/16" (38.6 x 28.4 cm). The Museum of Modern Art, New York. Gift of the photographer. © 2014/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/VG Bild-Kunst, Germany
Related People
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Artist
