Clearing Land, Ellis Unit

Date1967- 69

Maker Danny Lyon American, born 1942

Label TextLyon is a photographer committed to the documentary treatment of social realities. In 1967 he gained permission to move freely through six prisons operated by the Texas Department of Corrections. He tried to communicate the distressing reality he encountered as a visitor from the outside. Lyon contributes to a graphic tradition of concentrated, intensely dramatic images that stretches back to Goya's etching series "Disasters of War" (1810-13).

Object number83.288.13

Photo CreditPhoto: Elizabeth Mann

Exhibition HistorySeattle, Washington, Seattle Art Museum, 200 Photographs from the Museum Collection, Dec. 8, 1983 - Feb. 5, 1984. Text by Rod Slemmons. No cat. no. (as LTL 26.1980). Seattle, Washington, Seattle Art Museum, Collection Highlights: 1945 to the Present, Sept. 12, 1996 - June 1, 1997. Seattle, Washington, Danny Lyon: Dissenter in His Own Country, Nov. 13, 2019 - June 28, 2020.

Credit LineGift of Steven and Judith Clifford in honor of the museum's 50th year

Dimensions8 3/4 x 13 in. (22.3 x 33 cm)

MediumGelatin Silver Print