id: 160775
accession number: 1999.106
share license status: Copyrighted
url: https://clevelandart.org/art/1999.106
updated: 2022-01-04 17:25:31.301000
The Grand Canyon, c. 1924. William E. Dassonville (American, 1879-1957). Gelatin silver print on Dassonville "Charcoal Black" paper; image: 20.3 x 25.6 cm (8 x 10 1/16 in.); paper: 25.4 x 32.1 cm (10 x 12 5/8 in.); matted: 40.6 x 50.8 cm (16 x 20 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, John L. Severance Fund 1999.106
title: The Grand Canyon
title in original language:
series:
series in original language:
creation date: c. 1924
creation date earliest: 1919
creation date latest: 1929
current location:
creditline: John L. Severance Fund
copyright:
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culture: America, 20th century
technique: gelatin silver print on Dassonville "Charcoal Black" paper
department: Photography
collection: PH - American 1900-1950
type: Photograph
find spot:
catalogue raisonne:
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CREATORS
* William E. Dassonville (American, 1879-1957) - artist
William E. Dassonville American, 1879-1957
William Dassonville (born in Sacramento) was a pictorial photographer active in San Francisco during the first two decades of the 20th century. In addition to the pictorial work he produced for exhibition, Dassonville operated a professional portrait studio. A member of the California Camera Club, he gave lectured on art photography and contributed articles to Camera Craft, a photographic journal affiliated with the club. He exhibited his work in the first three San Francisco Photographic Salons (1901-3), as well as in other salons in Los Angeles, New York, and Chicago.
After losing all of his work in the 1906 earthquake, Dassonville left San Francisco for the Sierra Nevada. He later returned to the city, reestablishing his studio and exhibiting his photographs made in the mountains. In the early 1920s he began making photographic paper for his own use and in 1924 gave up his studio to concentrate on the manufacture of "Dassonville" paper. M.M.
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measurements: Image: 20.3 x 25.6 cm (8 x 10 1/16 in.); Paper: 25.4 x 32.1 cm (10 x 12 5/8 in.); Matted: 40.6 x 50.8 cm (16 x 20 in.)
state of the work:
edition of the work:
support materials:
inscriptions:
inscription: in pencil: "4081 /2"
translation:
remark:
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CURRENT EXHIBITIONS
title: American Space: Landscape Photography 1900-1950
opening date: 2001-01-06T00:00:00
American Space: Landscape Photography 1900-1950. The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer) (January 6-May 23, 2001).
title: Icons of American Photography: A Century of Photographs from the Cleveland Museum of Art
opening date: 2007-06-24T00:00:00
Icons of American Photography: A Century of Photographs from the Cleveland Museum of Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (June 24-September 16, 2007).
title: Shadows and Dreams: Pictorialist Photography in America
opening date: 2015-09-05T00:00:00
Shadows and Dreams: Pictorialist Photography in America. The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer) (September 5, 2015-January 17, 2016).
title: Stories From Storage
opening date: 2021-02-07T05:00:00
Stories From Storage. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (February 7-May 16, 2021).
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LEGACY EXHIBITIONS
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PROVENANCE
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fun fact:
At the start of the 20th century, the Grand Canyon was already a famous destination for tourists.
digital description:
wall description:
“Thou vast, profound, primeval hiding-place / Of ancient secrets,” wrote Henry Van Dyke in 1913 in his poem The Grand Canyon. Made a decade later, William E. Dassonville’s photograph conveys a similar awe at this national landmark’s grandeur, mystery, and power. In a shrewd composition that masterfully takes advantage of natural light, Dassonville emphasized the depth and breadth of the canyon by setting a white outcropping in the foreground against a dark shadow that slices the rectangular image in half diagonally. To its right, a sunbathed vista of cliffs and valleys takes our eye into deep, deep space.
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RELATED WORKS
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IMAGES