b. 26 September 1874; d. 3 November 1940
Lewis Hine was an American sociologist who took up photography in 1905 and used it as a documentary tool, to show the working class conditions of the poor immigrants from Europe. From 1911- 1916 he toured the US as official photographer for the National Labor Committee, where he depicted in a sensitive and heart- rending manner the plight of children working in the mills. He often hid his camera so that he could take authentic photographs; nevertheless he met with considerable opposition from the employers, who accused him of muck-raking. Sometimes he was banned from the premises, on other occasions the children were hidden from view when he arrived. On occasions Hine even posed as a fire inspector or insurance agent in order to gain access to the premises!
Hine discovered and exposed some appalling conditions, such as children aged six or seven having to work as many as twelve hours a day. Some of his prints have comments on the back, recording the circumstances. One reads "Sandie Fiefer, 10; South Carolina", another "Mart Payne, picks 20 lbs. cotton a day."
"I wanted to show things that had to be corrected", Hine declared. He produced several thousands of pictures. It was not until the 1930s that his work bore fruit, and child labour became controlled.