Artist
Judith Joy Ross (American, born 1946)American, born 1946
CultureAmerican
Titles
- Untitled
- from the series Portraits at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C.
Date1983–1984, printed 2005
PlaceWashington, District of Columbia, United States
MediumGelatin silver print
DimensionsImage: 9 5/8 × 7 11/16 in. (24.4 × 19.6 cm)
Sheet: 9 7/8 × 7 15/16 in. (25.1 × 20.2 cm)
Sheet: 9 7/8 × 7 15/16 in. (25.1 × 20.2 cm)
Credit LineGift of Peter and Susan MacGill
Object number2006.631
Non exposé
Explore Further
Department
PhotographyObject Type
Although Maya Lin’s design for the Vietnam Veterans Memorial
was initially—like the war itself—deeply controversial, it quickly became a
place of pilgrimage, grief, and meditation. Shortly after it opened, Judith Joy
Ross began photographing at the site—not the polished black granite walls
inscribed with the names of the dead, but rather the faces of those who came to
pay tribute to the fallen and ponder the cost of war. A portraitist of uncommon
sensitivity, Ross photographed visitors using a large-format camera and a
shallow depth of field that isolated her subjects in their own worlds of
thought.
Provenance Research Ongoing Inscriptions, Signatures and Marks
Inscribed in pencil, verso of sheet, lower edge: "'Untitled' from 'Portraits at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C.' 1983-84 [signature] 1/25 2005"
Inscribed in pencil, verso of sheet, upper right: "JJR-215"
Inscribed in pencil, verso of sheet, upper right: "JJR-215"
Signed in pencil, verso of sheet, lower right: "Judith Joy Ross"
Cataloguing data may change with further research.
If you have questions about this work of art or the MFAH Online Collection please contact us.
Judith Joy Ross
1993
Gelatin silver printing-out-paper print
2002.3382
Judith Joy Ross
1993, printed 1999
Gelatin silver print
2006.627