Laundry, New York 1936

Ilse Bing made this photograph, "Laundry, New York", using gelatin silver print. The image captures the everyday realities of urban life, the architecture of crowded tenements, and domestic labour. The washing lines crisscrossing the courtyard evoke the immigrant experience in New York in the mid-20th century. The buildings, with their fire escapes, reflect the architecture of working-class neighborhoods. Bing, a German Jewish émigré herself, arrived in New York in 1941 and brought to her new home a formal language developed in Europe, a modernist vision influenced by the Bauhaus movement. "Laundry, New York" presents a slice of city life in a way that also subtly comments on the social structures of its time. The choice of subject matter – laundry, the courtyard, the tenements – reflects an interest in spaces and people that were often overlooked by mainstream artistic institutions. Examining photographs like these through a historical lens, using resources from archives, libraries, and cultural institutions, helps us to understand the complex interplay between artistic expression and social context.