Border Monument No. 81 – N31° 20.048’ W109° 20.796’
Artist
David Taylor
(American, born 1965)
Date2009 (printed 2011)
Mediumpigment print
DimensionsImage: 21 3/4 × 29 1/4 in. (55.2 × 74.3 cm)
Frame: 30 5/8 × 37 1/2 × 1 3/4 in. (77.8 × 95.3 × 4.4 cm)
Support: 29 × 36 in. (73.7 × 91.4 cm)
Frame: 30 5/8 × 37 1/2 × 1 3/4 in. (77.8 × 95.3 × 4.4 cm)
Support: 29 × 36 in. (73.7 × 91.4 cm)
ClassificationsPhotograph
Credit LineMuseum purchase with funds from the Herzstein Family Acquisition Endowment Fund and donation from David Taylor and James Kelly Contemporary, 2013
Object number2013.10.4
DescriptionNight view of white stone obelisk displaying numeral 81 with fence on right. Grasses and cactus in foreground and night sky and lights of city in background.eMuseum Notes
In his series Working the Line, the artist set out to document 276 obelisks that mark the international boundary between the United States and Mexico. The monuments, installed between 1892 and1895, are situated along the boundary from El Paso/Juarez to San Diego/Tijuana. During the course of the project, Taylor negotiated an unusual level of access to border operations from the U.S. side. While photographing the monuments from both sides of the border, many of which were difficult to reach due to the remote and challenging terrain, Taylor also photographed the people he encountered: drug smugglers, migrants, border guards, and residents.
On View
Not on view
