Congregation of the Church of "Amici," Ontario Heights Friends Church, Dead Ox Flat, Oregon
| Artist | Dorothea Lange (American, 1895–1965) |
|---|---|
| Title | Congregation of the Church of "Amici," Ontario Heights Friends Church, Dead Ox Flat, Oregon |
| Date | October 1939, printed 1994 |
| Medium | Gelatin silver print |
| Dimensions | Sheet: 8 × 10 in. (20.3 × 25.4 cm) |
| Credit Line | Transfer from the Center for the Study of Religion and American Culture, IUPUI |
| Accession Number | 95.12 |
| This artwork is currently off display. You may be able to see this artwork by filling out an art viewing room request. | |
A group of people is standing in a dusty landscape in front of the entrance to an underground church.
Dorothea Lange began documenting the struggles of migrant workers along the Pacific coast for the California Relief Administration in 1935. She continued this theme as a FSA photographer (1935-39). In October of 1939 she produced a series of over seventy photographs of farm life in Malheur County, Oregon. Among these images were several examples of the region's characteristic "poor man's" sod structures, including this Friends church. While Lange is best known for her images of individual faces, she also took group portraits of people and their environments. Here the congregation is seen leaving the church after Sunday service. Lange sought to go beyond mere physical appearances to reveal how institutions, such as religion, influenced the people's lives. Even the domestic sod dwellings often included religious references--a family saying grace, a piano for practicing church hymns, and a blackboard for recording daily bible verses. In the face of economic hardships, the church provided a welcoming solace, sense of communal pride, and a hope for a better future for the children.
| Printer | Library of Congress |
|---|---|
| Publisher | Farm Security Administration |
Provenance research is ongoing for this and many other items in the Eskenazi Museum of Art permanent collection. For more information about the provenance of this artwork, please contact the department curator with specific questions.
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"Congregation of the Church of "Amici," Ontario Heights Friends Church, Dead Ox Flat, Oregon | Collections Online." Collections Online. Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Museum of Art, Indiana University, 2025. https://artmuseum.indiana.edu/collections-online/browse/object.php?number=95.12