Archie Love, Mill Worker, 14 Years Old, Chester, South Carolina, 1908 1908

Lewis Hine made this photograph of Archie Love, a mill worker, in Chester, South Carolina, in 1908. It’s a sepia toned photograph, a process which gives the image a warm, antique feel. Look closely at the textures: the rough bark of the tree on the left, the soft, worn fabric of Archie’s clothes, and the hazy background. Hine’s focus on Archie is sharp, but the rest of the scene is softened, like memory. The light is gentle, almost forgiving. You can almost smell the humidity in the air. But look at Archie’s face. There’s a gravity there, a seriousness that seems beyond his years. His eyes meet the camera’s gaze directly. He is framed by the building in the background, and bisected by the branches of the tree. The photograph is reminiscent of Jacob Riis’s photographs of child laborers and the urban dispossessed. The tones and poses are different, but both artists are making an important social commentary. These images aren’t just documents; they’re cries for justice.