Sunday, May 24, 2015

Control Tower



PHOTOGRAPHER’S JOURNAL: From his matchstick tower the crane operator saw all and controlled levers and pedals that connected by rods and cables to the motors and gears beneath him that made the crane do all its tricks. Before the windows were boarded, this was the eye of operations. The crane operators I’ve known were all deliberate people aware of the momentum of the mass they moved. How long did it take to master the technique for controlling the machine? How many master crane operators have sat here since the crane was built in 1917? Or did they stand? Was there once a chair, or did one have to lean into the machinery with the whole of one’s body?


2 comments:

Ginnie Hart said...

Astrid has a job where she stands all day (controlling medication packets for pharmacies and assisted-living residents). I suspect she'd say this was a standing-only job, by the looks of it. Some jobs are like that!

You find the absolute coolest places for photo ops!

Emery Roth said...

Yes, but I'm not sure you can work those pedals without a chair.