Atlas— Frank #2, from the series "Working People"

Atlas— Frank #2, from the series "Working People"

Milton RogovinWW-1978-093040
1978·Gelatin silver print·Image: 17.4 × 17.7 cm (6 7/8 × 7 in.); Paper: 25.1 × 20.2 cm (9 15/16 × 8 in.)

<p>Milton Rogovin was a lifelong champion of working and everyday people. &quot;The rich have their photographers,&quot; he said. &quot;I photograph the forgotten ones.&quot; An optometrist in Buffalo, New York, Rogovin was politically active, and he turned to photography in the late 1950s as a way to speak out about his community. Rogovin photographed people near his Lower West Side office, returning to photograph the same individuals over the decades, ultimately producing a body of work remarkable for its straightforward approach and sympathetic rapport. In 1975, Rogovin closed his optometry practice to photograph workers in Buffalo's steel mills, contrasting images of labor to those of life at home. Here Rogovin shows Frank Andrzjewski, Jr., a steelworker at Atlas Steel who enjoyed spending time outdoors with his family. After Atlas Steel closed, Frank's wife got a job and left the family, and he raised his two children alone.</p>

Catalogue

Year
1978
Dimensions
Image: 17.4 × 17.7 cm (6 7/8 × 7 in.); Paper: 25.1 × 20.2 cm (9 15/16 × 8 in.)

Artist

Milton Rogovin
Milton Rogovin

Photography

Milton Rogovin was an American photographer known for sustained documentary work among working-class and marginalized communities from the 1940s onward. His photographs of coal miners in Appalachia, steelworkers in Pennsylvania, and residents of Buffalo's East Side combined unflinching social observation with formal clarity and deep respect for his subjects. Working primarily in black and white, Rogovin created extended series that functioned as visual archives of labor and everyday life in postwar industrial America. His approach to portraiture rejected sentimentality in favor of direct engagement and prolonged presence within communities.

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More

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Record

Verified by WattsOS
Year
1978
Dimensions
Image: 17.4 × 17.7 cm (6 7/8 × 7 in.); Paper: 25.1 × 20.2 cm (9 15/16 × 8 in.)
Watts ID
WW-1978-093040

Source

Source
aic
Status
verified

Artist

Milton Rogovin

Milton Rogovin

Photography

View artist profile →