Shiprock Triptych #1 / Richard Misrach
About this Item
Record Details
- Accession Number
- 2004/2.59.1
- Title
- Shiprock Triptych #1
- Artist
- Richard Misrach
- Artist Nationality
- American
- Artist Life Dates
- born 1949
- Medium and Support
- cibachrome print on paper
- Object Creation Date
- 1987
- Object Creation Place
- North and Central America (continent)
- United States (nation)
- Creation Place 1
- North and Central America (continent)
- Creation Place 2
- United States (nation)
- Credit Line
- Gift of Jack A. and Noreen Rounick
- Dimensions
- 20.5 cm x 25.5 cm (8 1/16 in. x 10 1/16 in.)
- Century
- 20th century
- Primary Object Classification
- Photograph
- Primary Object Type
- cibachrome print
- Physical Description
- Born and raised in Los Angeles, Richard Misrach first began to photograph western landscapes as an undergraduate at Berkeley. Beginning in the late 1970s, he traveled extensively in the American West, using a large-format camera and color film to make beautiful and technically precise photographs of the often-disastrous effects mankind has had on the environment. For Shiprock Triptych #1, Misrach traveled to the Navajo and Chuska volcanic fields that stretch between northeastern Arizona and northwestern New Mexico, where Shiprock, the unique natural monument sacred to the Navajo, sits in close proximity to uranium mines and mill tailings (the radioactive waste resulting from the extraction and processing of uranium) that contaminate drinking and irrigation water and diffuse carcinogenic radon gas. Created from a volcanic eruption that occurred over 30 million years ago, Shiprock is shown in Misrach’s images as a majestic if distant presence, alone in the center of a sparse landscape. The three photographs—taken at intervals over the course of the day—emphasize both the actual passage of time and the sense of timelessness conjured by such natural monuments.
- Subject Matter
- This photograph depicts "Shiprock" a rock formation in the high-desert plain area of the Navajo Nation in New Mexico. This geological formation is a remnant of an ancient volcano. It has an important role in Navajo religion, mythology and tradition and is the most prominant landmark in northwestern New Mexico.
- Secondary Keywords
- level
- upward
- associated concepts
- buildings and the land
- descriptors
- earth sciences concepts
- inorganic material
- landforms
- landforms and landform components
- landforms by shape or position
- landscapes (environments)
- materials
- materials by composition
- natural landscapes
- people and culture
- physical sciences concepts
- scientific concepts
- settlements and landscapes
- Rights
- If you are interested in using an image for a publication, please visit https://umma.umich.edu/about/services/request-image/ for more information and to fill out the online Image Rights and Reproductions Request Form.
Technical Details
- Collection
- University of Michigan Museum of Art
- Image Size
- 1878 x 1512
- File Size
- 378 KB
- Record
- 2004/2.59.1
- Link to this Item
-
https://quod.lib.umich.edu/m/musart/x-2004-sl-2.59.1/2004_2_59_1.jpg
Rights and Permissions
Related Links
Portfolios
- In public portfolios
Cite this Item
View the Help Guide for more information.
- Full citation
-
"Shiprock Triptych #1; Richard Misrach." In the digital collection University of Michigan Museum of Art. https://quod.lib.umich.edu/m/musart/x-2004-sl-2.59.1/2004_2_59_1.jpg. University of Michigan Library Digital Collections. Accessed April 17, 2024.
