Elevator Garage, Chicago Possibly 1936 - 1982

This is John Gutmann’s “Elevator Garage, Chicago”, a gelatin silver print. It’s hard to pinpoint exactly when it was made, but it captures a moment, a way of seeing the urban landscape as this mechanical, almost surreal structure. What strikes me here is the texture – or lack of it. Gutmann plays with light to flatten the forms of these cars. You see the way the chrome details catch the light, but the bodies are mostly dark, blending into the industrial architecture of the elevator itself. It's a study in contrasts: the smooth curves of the cars against the rigid geometry of the building. Look at how the perspective is skewed, making the elevator seem to stretch endlessly upward. The repetition of the cars creates a visual rhythm, a kind of mechanical ballet. It reminds me a bit of Bernd and Hilla Becher’s typologies, that deadpan documentation of industrial forms. But Gutmann brings a sense of humor, a slightly off-kilter perspective. He doesn't just document, he interprets, he plays. It's like a futuristic vision viewed through a slightly cracked lens.