Celebration at End of War

Weegee, Celebration at End of War, ca. 1945, gelatin silver print, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase, 1974.32.4
Copied Weegee, Celebration at End of War, ca. 1945, gelatin silver print, 13 3⁄8 x 10 1⁄2 in. (33.9 x 26.8 cm.), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase, 1974.32.4

Artwork Details

Title
Celebration at End of War
Artist
Date
ca. 1945
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
13 3⁄8 x 10 1⁄2 in. (33.9 x 26.8 cm.)
Credit Line
Museum purchase
Mediums Description
gelatin silver print
Classifications
Subjects
  • Figure group
  • Recreation — dancing
  • Recreation — party — block party
  • Object — other — flag
Object Number
1974.32.4
Linked Open Data
https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/1974.32.4

Artwork Description

Weegee was a freelance photographer who sold lurid photographs of fires, car crashes, deaths, and violent crimes to tabloid newspapers. Born Usher Fellig, his unusual moniker is a phonetic adaptation of “Ouija,” the board game used by mediums and spiritualists in attempts to predict the future. A police radio allowed him to track crimes and other events, and created the illusion of clairvoyance. Weegee’s spur-of-the-moment photographs captured the quick movement and raucous energy before him.


A Democracy of Images: Photographs from the Smithsonian American Art Museum, 2013