At first glance the photographs of O. Winston Link seem to be simply an extensive project that documents the end of steam locomotives. As we examine the breadth of Link’s output, the images also draw us in with the drama of cinematic lighting, lyrical landscapes and sentimental views that could be illustrations by Norman Rockwell. For example, the ingenious composition of Hot Shot Eastbound, Iaeger, West Virginia captures the end of an era going by in a puff of smoke in the distance while the new automobile culture consumes the foreground.
Featuring photographs from the museum’s collection and several loaned works, the exhibition will examine Link’s technical accomplishments and innovations as a photographer as well as his in-depth documentation of a quickly fading mode of transportation and way of life in rural America.
