Billboard Along U.S. 99 Behind Which Three Destitute Families of Migrants are Camped. Kern County, California
- Photographer
- Dorothea Lange, American, 1895–1965
- Date
- 1938
- Material
- Gelatin silver print
- photographed in
- California, United States, North and Central America
- Classification
- Photographs
- Collection
- Prints, Drawings, and Photographs
- Current Location
- Not on view
- Dimensions
- image: 7 9/16 x 9 5/8 in. (19.2 x 24.4 cm)
sheet: 8 1/8 x 10 in. (20.6 x 25.4 cm) - Credit Line
- Museum Shop Fund
- Rights
- Public Domain
- Object Number
- 148:1987
NOTES
In this image, a billboard advertises luxurious train travel above a group of families camping outside near their cars. Dorothea Lange took this photograph on a road trip in her home state of California, where she documented the struggle of migrant workers. The visual dominance of the sign hovering over the figures suggests the growing wealth inequalities of the Great Depression. While some in this period had the financial means to seek adventure in their travel, others were forced to leave their homes because of economic struggles.
Provenance
- 1987
Paul M. Hertzmann, Inc., San Francisco, CA
1987 -
Saint Louis Art Museum, purchased from Paul M. Hertzmann, Inc. [1]
Notes:
[1] Per invoice dated September 23, 1987 [SLAM document files]. Minutes of the Meeting of the Acquisitions and Loans Committee of the Board of Trustees, Saint Louis Art Museum, September 18, 1987.
Paul M. Hertzmann, Inc., San Francisco, CA
1987 -
Saint Louis Art Museum, purchased from Paul M. Hertzmann, Inc. [1]
Notes:
[1] Per invoice dated September 23, 1987 [SLAM document files]. Minutes of the Meeting of the Acquisitions and Loans Committee of the Board of Trustees, Saint Louis Art Museum, September 18, 1987.
We regularly update records, which may be incomplete. If you have additional information, please contact us at provenance@slam.org.