Luke Swank: Modernist Photographer

Luke Swank (1890–1944) was one of the pioneers of Modernism in photography. Although well known in the 1930s, after his death he was largely forgotten. Swank became, in effect, a missing modernist. This exhibition establishes his place in the history of photography.

Swank found beauty in the grittiness of the steel industry, explored the behind-the-scenes life of the circus, made portraits, transformed mundane household items and industrial parts into interesting abstract forms, examined historical rural architecture, and in his most mature work, described urban life as only a visual poet could. What makes Swank’s vision unique is the way he combined traditional machine-age and social documentary subject matter with a dramatic and poetic use of light, form, and the picture frame. While his images are crisp and clean, they are less about specifics of place and more about transcendence of place to universality of experience. They offer an extraordinary look at the America of the mid-to-late 1920s, the Depression, and the first half of World War II.

Luke Swank: Modernist Photographer was organized by Carnegie Museum of Art. Howard Bossen, Michigan State University, Lansing, Michigan, served as guest curator. The research for the exhibition and accompany catalogue was funded through the Intramural Research Grants Program (IRGP) at Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan.

The exhibition’s presentation in Pittsburgh has been made possible by the Drue Heinz Trust and the Robert S. Waters Charitable Trust.

General support for the museum’s exhibition program is provided by The Heinz Endowments, the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, and Allegheny Regional Asset District.

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Luke Swank: Modernist Photographer