Accession Number
1984/1.292

Title
WR5 Model T in Front of Barn

Artist(s)
Wright Morris

Artist Nationality
American (North American)

Object Creation Date
1947, printed 1947-1984

Medium & Support
gelatin silver print on paper

Dimensions
10 1/16 in x 7 7/8 in (25.5 cm x 20 cm);19 5/16 in x 14 5/16 in (49.05 cm x 36.35 cm);10 1/16 in x 7 15/16 in (25.5 cm x 20.2 cm);9 7/16 in x 7 1/2 in (24 cm x 19 cm)

Credit Line
Museum Purchase made possible by the Friends of the Museum of Art

Subject matter
Composed symmetrically, this photograph depicts a black, Model T Ford automobile sitting squarely in front of the façade of a wooden barn. The barn’s face is photographed straight-on, its peaked roof forming a large triangle that dominates the upper-half of the image. Unpainted and weathered, the bare clapboards of the barn run in horizontal bands across the barn's face, while the closed doors are composed of vertical planks, running perpendicular to the rest of the structure’s construction. Framed perfectly in the rectangle formed by the barn doors, the car sits motionless and empty. The slightly vignetted upper corners of the image draw one’s attention to triangular point of the building’s roof. In the top right corner, a faint wisp of cloud extends out of the frame. The symmetrical, centralized composition emphasizes a sense of stillness and order, and lends the barn and car a sense of stoic dignity. 

Physical Description
This image depicts a driverless Model T Ford automobile sitting in front of a wooden barn.

Primary Object Classification
Photograph

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
automobiles
barn doors
barns
car
farmyards
façades
modern and contemporary art
wood (plant material)