Milk Drop Coronet

1957

Artist

Harold Eugene Edgerton, American, 1903-1990: Born: Fremont, NE; Work Locations: Cambridge, MA

Object

photograph

Medium

Dye transfer print

Accession Number

1996.57.2

Credit Line

Gift of Harold and Esther Edgerton Family Foundation

Harold Eugene Edgerton (American). Milk Drop Coronet. 1957. Dye transfer print. Gift of Harold and Esther Edgerton Family Foundation. 1996.57.2.

Dimensions

image height: 18.313 in, 46.5150 cm; image width: 13.313 in, 33.8150 cm; sheet height: 20 in, 50.8000 cm; sheet width: 16 in, 40.6400 cm; mat height: 28 in, 71.1200 cm; mat width: 22 in, 55.8800 cm

Edition

143/150

Inscription

Signed on verso in pencil; "8501.2143/5701" in pencil, LRC of verso.

Department

Photography

Collection

Photography

The strobe light was an obscure piece of laboratory equipment before MIT professor Harold Edgerton got his hands on it and turned it into a common tool—every flash camera has one nowadays, thanks to him. Edgerton’s improved strobe could create a burst of light so short and so bright that he could create a photo of something that could not be seen with the naked eye. Yet his work was about much more than just stopping time; Edgerton had a real sense of beauty and drama. This surprising and beautiful photograph of a milk drop hitting a saucer and splashing up into a coronet shape is a good example of the beautiful things Edgerton “saw” with his camera.

Exhibition History

"Exposure: Photos from the Vault"—Denver Art Museum, 4/30/2010 - 10/31/2010