The Social Gospel

Brady's work anticipates two developments which would come to increasingly dominate the market for images: 1) the notion of the image as a unique, salable commodity; and 2) the use of such images--either in a sequence or with corresponding text--to create or affirm a sense of consensus. This second technique came to prominence in the late nineteenth century in the work of social reformers such as Jacob Riis and Lewis Hine. The former, a Danish immigrant (arriving in 1870) who worked as a police reporter, found himself disturbed by the harsh conditions he witnessed in the course of his work. He began to document his encounters, first in print, and then with images, creating the basis for what would eventually become a lecture tour and slide show. The companion volume which emerged from this project, How the Other Half Lives (1890), remains one of the most important social documents of its era, bringing the reality of poverty and exploitation (e.g., the immigrant experience) before the eyes of the public. While the power of Riis's images is undeniable, it is impossible to ignore their homogeneity, their assembly as a means of persuasion.

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