Lot 79: Karl Struss (1886-1981)

Man's Construction, 1926Gelatin silver print, 'Hollywood' stamp on the verso; signed, titled and copyright reproduction limitation in pencil on the mount verso.3 3/4 x 4 3/4in (9 1/2 x 12cm)mount 4 1/2 x 5 1/4in (11.5 x 13.3cm)

Provenance
With Robert Miller Gallery, New YorkMan's Construction, arguably Karl Struss's masterpiece, was made in 1925 at the height of the photographer's career and at a point when the his focus was shifting from the romanticism of Pictorialism towards a more formal Modernist style. In 1912, six of Struss's photographs, still firmly in the Pictorialist tradition, had been selected for the Stieglitz's Camera Work. However, by the time Struss created Man's Construction, we are confronted with a composition which is far more sophisticated and original. Here Struss juxtaposes the softly lit background of the bridge against a sharply-focused construction site in the foreground. Man's Construction is a proto-modernist triumph, whose significance and presence far outstrips the characteristic, tiny size of the print.