Black Bayou Plantation, Near Glendora, Mississippi
1970
This work by William Eggleston joins four others in the museum's collection, and would be the earliest of the group. Eggleston is considered one of the most important contemporary photographers, not only for breaking the color barrier and helping to legitimize color photography within the photo community, but also for the casual rigor of his work. This work, like so many others, seems to be a loose snapshot, but the perfect balance of elements within the field and distribution of color throughout the composition reveal it to be highly considered, and give it its peculiar visual power. He is an artist worth collecting in depth, and this important gift is a step in that direction. (MD 2007)
Dye transfer print
Image: 18 x 23 in. (45.7 x 58.4 cm)
Frame: 25 x 30 3/4 in. (63.5 x 78.1 cm)
Gift of Timothy Bradbury, in honor of the 75th Anniversary of the Seattle Art Museum
2022.23
Provenance: [Phillips, New York]; purchased at auction by Timothy Bradbury, Seattle, Washington; to Seattle Art Museum, Seattle, Washington, 2022