VOA 漫速英语：从图片中看美国的变化

A new exhibit of photographs shows how much theUnited States changed from the early 1900s to themiddle of the 20th century.

Photographs show how the U.S. has changed.

One photograph, for example, captures a lovingmoment between a mother and her child. Anothershows workers at the Empire State Building in NewYork City.

The exhibit has more than 130 pictures in all. The showis called “American Moments.” It can be seen throughthe middle of September at The Phillips Collection inWashington, DC.

The photographs were made from the 1930s to the 1960s. This was a time of great social, economic andtechnological change. The pictures were taken bysome of the best-known photographers in the country.

Renée Maurer organized the exhibit.

“While putting the show together we realized that, youknow, there was a story that could be told thatreflected time, place and experience in America. Mostof these photographs are from (the) mid-20th century. The themes reveal different ideas, different momentsof change.”

Esther Bubley was a photojournalist. Renée Maurer toldVOA Ms. Bubley used her camera to show the changing responsibilities ofwomen in the workplace during the 1950s.

“I think it was the type of photographer that Esther Bubley was. She wasalways interested in, really, the human condition and how she could capturethat in a photograph.”

Ms. Bubley took many pictures of people riding on buses. Bus travel increasedgreatly during World War II because the government limited the amount ofgasoline Americans could buy, and the number of tires for civilian use. Themilitary needed fuel and rubber for the war effort.

Photographers Bruce Davidson and Louis Faurer took pictures of people onbuses, cars and trains. Ms. Maurer says Mr. Davidson also took manypictures showing poor people and the civil rights struggle in the segregatedSouth.

“He wanted to really show America what was still going on in the 60s, andreally ask America: ‘Is this something that we can still tolerate?’ It wasimportant for him to, to show, you know, his audience that there’s still a lot ofwork left to do.”

Renée Maurer hopes the American Moments exhibit will give people a betterunderstanding of a time when the United States was experiencing majorchange.

I’m Christopher Jones-Cruise.

VOA Correspondent Julie Taboh reported this story from Washington.Christopher Jones-Cruise adapted it for VOA Learning English. George Growwas the editor.

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Words in This Story

exhibit – n. a collection of objects that have been put in a public space forpeople to look at; a show

reflect– v. to show (something); to make (something) known

theme(s) – n. a subject or issue that is discussed often or repeatedly

reveal – v. to show plainly or clearly; to make (something that was hidden)able to be seen

segregated – adj. describing people of different races who are forciblyseparated from one another

tolerate – v. to let something exist, happen or be done

audience – n. the people who watch, read, look at or listen to something; acrowd