Central Pacific
1999
Image not available — this artwork is under copyright
View on museum website →Medium
gelatin silver print
Dimensions
image/sheet: 18.9 × 24.2 cm (7 7/16 × 9 1/2 in.) mount: 40.64 × 50.8 cm (16 × 20 in.)
Classification
Photograph
Department
CPH
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Gift of Peter T. Barbur
Accession Number
2012.103.2
Art Historical Context
Mark Ruwedel's *Central Pacific* (199) is a striking gelatin silver print capturing the enduring traces of America's audacious 19th-century railroad expansion. This 7 7/16 × 9 1/2-inch image, elegantly mounted to 16 × 20 inches, belongs to the National Gallery of's photography collection, gifted by Peter T. Barbur Ruwedel, a contemporary American photographer, is renowned for his meticulous documentation of Western landscapes scarred by human ambition, often focusing on abandoned railroad grades that whisper stories of the past. The title evokes the Central Pacific Railroad, a pivotal force i...
About the Artist
Mark Ruwedel
Mark Ruwedel, born on June 11, 1954, in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, initially pursued painting, earning a BFA from Kutztown State College in 1978. He transitioned to photography during this time, later obtaining an MFA from Concordia University in Montreal in 1983. Working as a custom printer in Pennsylvania from 1979 to 1980 honed his technical skills before he relocated to Canada, where he taught a...