Canecutter 1930

This photograph, Canecutter, probably taken sometime in the early to mid-20th century, shows us an industrial machine, immense in scale, suspended by chains. The anonymous photographer clearly wasn’t going for beauty here, but a document, an index of industry. The tonality is all gray, from light to dark, and it’s that range which gives us so much information about the materiality of the piece. Look closely at the teeth of the canecutter: each one is worn and uneven, with subtle tonal shifts indicating the wear and tear of repetitive labor. This level of detail is so impressive, the photographer takes the time to show us this information. That small figure of the worker next to the machine gives us a sense of the overwhelming scale. The canecutter itself feels both menacing and awe-inspiring. Maybe someone like Bernd and Hilla Becher, with their typologies of industrial structures, might be a relevant comparison here. What is clear is that these photographs have a real conceptual power.