About this artwork
Strict rules were in place – referenced in the signs in this photograph – to ensure safety for those working underground, but mining remained a dangerous occupation. Willie Darling, a former Midlothian miner, recalled his own experience:'This guy wis workin' between the prop (a hydraulic ram) and the gearbox ... an’ a bit coal came doon and jammed in the conveyor, and the prop that wis huddin it fell away ... an' he got crushed ... an' we hid tae shove that conveyor back. He wis off work fir aboot a year ... an' aw' his innards got squashed. How he wisnae killed, I don't know.' Newtongrange Village Voices, 6 March 2023.
Updated March 2024
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artist:Milton Rogovin (1909 - 2011) American
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title:Family of Miners, Scotland, 1982
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date created:1982
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materials:Gelatin silver print
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measurements:18.40 x 17.30 cm
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object type:
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credit line:Gift 2006
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accession number:PGP 371.6
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gallery:
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subject:
Milton Rogovin
Milton Rogovin
Milton Rogovin was an American social documentary photographer. Born in New York, Rogovin had experienced the Great Depression of the 1930s. It left a profound impression on him which fuelled his empathy with the plight of working-class people. He practised as an optometrist in Buffalo, New York...