A Lewis Hine scandal
The Atlantic Monthly website has an article by Richard B Woodward, Too much of a good thing: photography, forgery, and the Lewis Hine scandal. Here’s the blurb:
The theoretical physicist who ignited the biggest firestorm in the history of the American photography market was simply trying to figure out if his vintage photos were genuine. By the time he learned the answer, two of the country’s best-known photography scholars had come under a cloud of suspicion.
![Part of a photo of Lewis Hine photographing children in a slum, c. 1910 [link to the whole image on the George Eastman House website]](images/LewisHine.jpg)
About Lewis Hine: From 1905 this American sociologist-turned-photographer recorded and publicised the plight of migrants, workers and children. Hine helped establish the camera as a tool for social activists. See online collections of his work held by George Eastman House, the New York Public Library and the Library of Congress.
See Lewis Hine biographies (with links to more images) on the Getty Museum, Multimedia Library, Photocollect Gallery and Masters of Photography websites.
To Whom it May Concern:
Hi. We are two middle school students participating in the National
History Day Competition. This competition is pretty well known, so we
were wondering if there was any information that you could give us. We
noticed that your museum contains many photographs from Lewis Hine and
we thought that it would be a good idea to contact you. Any
information would be appreciated. Thank you for your time.
Sincerely,
Ben Kwan
Chris Nguyen