Accession Number
2016/2.427

Title
Award-winning Gas Worker, Magnitogorsky Metallurgy Plant

Artist(s)
Dmitri Baltermants

Artist Nationality
Russian (culture or style)

Object Creation Date
circa 1939-1990, printed 2003

Medium & Support
gelatin silver print on paper

Dimensions
20 in x 16 in (50.8 cm x 40.64 cm)

Credit Line
Gift of Thomas Wilson '79 and Jill Garling '80

Subject matter
In this photograph, the viewer looks up toward the figure of an "award-winning gas worker" at the Magnitogorsky Iron and Steel Works (a.k.a. Metallurgy Plant). The low vantage point renders the sitter monumental, an effect reinforced by the tall, vertical silos and smokestacks in the background, which serve as a framing device for the main subject of the photograph. The man's steely gray eyes peer off toward the right. His right hand holds a cigarette, which he either lifts toward his mouth or lowers back down to his side. His left arm is akimbo, associating him visually with older painted portraits of nobles and monarchs.  

Physical Description
A man in worker's blues and hat looks off toward the right-hand side of the photograph as he holds a cigarette in his right hand.

Primary Object Classification
Photograph

Primary Object Type
black and white print

Collection Area
Photography

Rights
If you are interested in using an image for a publication, please visit http://umma.umich.edu/request-image for more information and to fill out the online Image Rights and Reproductions Request Form.

Keywords
factories (organizations)
industrial sites
men (male humans)
workers