Crystal Fucked Up
1991, printed 1994
Image not available — this artwork is under copyright
View on museum website →Medium
gelatin silver print
Dimensions
sheet: 35.4 × 27.6 cm (13 15/16 × 10 7/8 in.) image: 32.4 × 21.3 cm (12 3/4 × 8 3/8 in.)
Classification
Photograph
Department
CPH
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Corcoran Collection (Gift of Betsy Karel)
Accession Number
2015.19.4775
Art Historical Context
Jim Goldberg's *Crystal Fucked Up*1991, printed 4) is a striking gelatin silver print that exemplifies the photographer's raw, empathetic approach to documentary work. Measuring 35.4 × 27.6 cm, this intimate black-and-white image draws from Goldberg's signature style, often blending portraits of marginalized individuals with their own handwritten annotations to reveal personal stories. The provocative title hints at the harsh realities of urban life in early 1990s America, amid rising issues like drug epidemics and homelessness, capturing a moment of vulnerability with unflinching honesty. Ge...
About the Artist
Jim Goldberg
Jim Goldberg, born in 1953 in New Haven, Connecticut, emerged as a pivotal figure in American documentary photography through his immersive, collaborative approach to capturing marginalized lives. He earned a BA in photography from Western Washington University in 1975 before studying at the San Francisco Art Institute under Larry Sultan, a conceptually oriented photographer whose influence shaped...