credit in pencil and red crayon and with a Picture Post Library label and a Hulton Deutsch stamp on the reverse, 1926

The Weston Gallery, Carmel

This photograph, trimmed to the image and on stiff double-weight paper, is in generally excellent condition. There is minor chipping along the edges - mainly at the left edge - and at the corners. In raking light, the following are visible: some silvering; tiny impressions; faint soiling, mainly on screw sculpture; and a fingerprint at the lower edge. On the reverse, a stamp in the upper left corner is only partially legible; it appears to be a use stamp as it is annotated with credit information. There is a 'Hulton-Deutsch' stamp on the reverse. The following is written in an unidentified hand: 'Man Ray' in red crayon; 'Pho / Phot / Man Ray' in pencil; and 'WR 12/2/52' in ink [crossed out in pencil]. There are two hinge remnants at the lower edge on the reverse. When examined under ultraviolet light, this print does not appear to fluoresce.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

A larger cropping of this image was published under the title Paris Machine Shop in the French-English literary magazine transition in the summer 1928 (no. 13, following p. 108). Founded in Paris in 1927 by the American poet Eugene Jolas, transition published writings by Dadaist and Surrealist artists. In this image, Man Ray combined his famous Danger/Dancer areograph painting of 1920 with a monumental wooden winepress screw that was Constantin Brancusi’s main influence for The Endless Column, and was still in the sculptor's studio at the time. Man Ray and Brancusi met for the first time in 1921 when Man Ray helped Brancusi install a darkroom in his studio.