Class A, Lanterns and Funnels, Near Bonsack, Virginia
Artist
O. Winston Link
(American, 1914-2001)
CultureAmerican
Date1959
MediumGelatin silver print
DimensionsOverall, Image: 19 1/2 × 15 5/8 in. (49.5 × 39.7 cm)
Overall, Support: 20 × 16 in. (50.8 × 40.6 cm)
Overall, Mat: 28 1/2 × 24 1/16 in. (72.4 × 61.1 cm)
Overall, Support: 20 × 16 in. (50.8 × 40.6 cm)
Overall, Mat: 28 1/2 × 24 1/16 in. (72.4 × 61.1 cm)
InscribedSigned and dated by the artist in pencil on the verso of the print. Artist's Studio stamp on the verso of the print.
Credit LineGift of Susan and David Goode
Object number2022.31.2
On View
Not on viewLabel TextO. Winston Link American (1914-2001) CLASS A, LANTERNS AND FUNNELS Near Bonsack, Virginia, 1959 L2004.11.37 This photograph, one of the last made on the N&W, is one of Winston Link's most sophisticated, requiring two exposures at two focus settings. Setting up his camera inside the little switchman's shack at the spot where pushers waited to help trains over Blue Ridge Grade, Link first focused on the tracks, then focused on the interior of the shack, with its lanterns and funnels. He marked each focus point on the camera. His first exposure was for the locomotive, which required 31 No. 2 flashbulbs. He then set the focus for the interior of the room and exposed the film again for a brief time exposure to capture the glow of the kerosene lamp. This was followed by the light from a single flashbulb to light the rest of the interior. David Plowden, Winston's assistant for a short time, stands outside, waving. Plowden subsequently became a distinguished photographer and writer, producing a number of books which document American technological history. Edited By: DS Approved By: MHM Approval Date: 07/25/2005 ProvenanceRobert Mann Gallery to Susan and David Goode to CMA.Exhibition History"Norfolk and Western Railway Photographs by O. Winston Link," Alice R. and Sol B. Frank Photography Galleries, Chrysler Museum of Art, Norfolk, Va., July 1 - December 31, 2005. Published ReferencesGhost Trains: Railroad Photographs of the 1950s (Norfolk: Chrysler Museum, 1983). This booklet accompanied the exhibition of Link's works at the Chysler. It includes some of Link's recordings on an 8" 33 RPM and data on all the photos. Night Tick by O. Winston Link: Photographs of the Norfolk and Western Railway, 1955-60 (London: The Photographers' Gallery, 1983) Tim Hansley and O. Winston Link, Stream, Steel, and Stars: America's Last Steam Railroad (New York: Harry N. Abrams, 1987) Anthony Korner, "The Night Owl," Artforum 27, no. 27, no. 9 (May 1989): 141-146 O. Winston Link and Thomas H. Garver, The Last Steam Railroad in America, (New York: Harry N. Abrams, 1995)
