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Monolith, the Face of Half Dome, Yosemite Valley

Monolith, the Face of Half Dome, Yosemite Valley

Ansel Adams
American, 1902–1984
1927
A gelatin silver print in which Ansel Adams frames and renders the monumental rock face of Half Dome to convey its monumental scale and sculptural presence.
The image hits you with a vast, near-vertical plane of granite that fills the frame—its fine striations, deep shadowed crevices, and snow-clad ledges are sharpened into dramatic black-and-white contrast against a luminous sky.
This work exemplifies Adams’s technical mastery and helped establish modern landscape photography’s ability to translate geological grandeur into precise, high-contrast images that influenced both aesthetic practice and environmental awareness.
Medium
Gelatin silver print
Dimensions
7 3/4 × 5 3/4" (19.7 × 14.6 cm)
Classification
Department
Credit
Gift of Albert M. Bender
Accession
21.1939
Palette
Art Terms
Exhibitions
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