Interior of cantilever at rail level 1888

This is a photograph taken in December 1888, capturing the interior of a cantilever at rail level. Notice how the crisscrossing metal beams and wooden planks create a complex, almost maze-like structure. The photograph reveals the sheer amount of labor and raw material involved in constructing this feat of engineering. The repetitive forms of the beams and planks not only convey a sense of the cantilever's immense scale, but also the repetitive processes of fabrication and assembly that define industrial production. The image is compelling not only for its architectural subject, but for the anonymous human labor it implies: the welders, carpenters, and engineers who worked tirelessly to bring this structure into being. By focusing on the materials, construction, and social context of the cantilever, we can begin to challenge the divide between "high" architecture and the everyday realities of building and labor.