Cantor Arts Center & Anderson Collection Magazine | Spring - Summer 2023

REALITY
MAKES THEM
DREAM
AMERICAN PHOTOGRAPHY, 1929–1941
MAR. 29–JUL. 30, 2023
Freidenrich Family Gallery—221
In the fall of 1930, Stanford
biology professor Laurence Bass-
Becking used a curious phrase
to describe the photography
of his friend Edward Weston:
“Reality makes him dream.” In
typical usage, the words “reality”
and “dream” convey opposite
meanings; the former does not readily lead to the latter. Few people
today would associate dreaminess with this period of US history,
yet Bass-Becking penned this statement one year into the economic
turmoil that would last until the nation’s entry into World War II in
December 1941.
Nearly a century later, the time
is ripe for a fresh look at the
photography made in the crucible
of the Great Depression. This
exhibition presents more than
100 photographs, periodicals,
and photobooks made across
the United States in the 1930s.
Five photographers featured in
the Capital Group Foundation
Photography Collection at the Cantor Arts Center—Ansel Adams,
John Gutmann, Helen Levitt, Wright Morris, and Edward Weston—are
highlighted alongside a diverse selection of photographs by
their contemporaries.
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