Interior Detail, West Virginia Coal Miner's House
Walker Evans
American, 1903–1975
1935
Walker Evans's gelatin silver print quietly records the spare interior of a West Virginia coal miner's house, arranging everyday objects into a precise, empathetic portrait of Depression‑era life.
You notice at once the odd juxtaposition of glossy commercial cutouts—graduation figures and a Coca‑Cola Santa—tacked to patched walls above a worn wicker chair and a broom, all caught in a slant of light that makes the humble room feel both lived‑in and slightly staged.
Part of Evans’s Depression‑era documentary practice, the photograph links private hardship to national consumer imagery and helped redefine documentary photography as a method of social observation through careful composition and detail.
Medium
Gelatin silver print
Dimensions
8 7/8 × 7 3/16" (22.5 × 18.2 cm)
Classification
Department
Credit
Purchase
Accession
460.1966
Palette
Art Terms
Exhibitions
