1457100 1931 Lewis Hine. The Empire State Building.

 

Lewis Hine et al - FIRST EDITION OF EMPIRE STATE, 1931.  (NEW YORK CITY). Empire State, A History. (New York: Publicity Associates), 1931. Slim quarto, original black, gold and silver pictorial stiff paper wrappers, staple-bound as issued.  First edition of this promotional history recording the dramatic creation of the Empire State Building, with a beautiful Art Deco cover illustration and over 65 photographic illustrations, including seven half-tones by Lewis W. Hine.  In 1931 the Empire State Building became the world’s tallest building at 1,048 feet: a construction of Indiana limestone and granite, 60,000 tons of steel, 200,000 cubic feet of stone, 10 million bricks and 6400 windows. Celebrating the engineering and architectural ingenuity behind the building’s creation, this slim promotional history commemorates the landmark’s historic beginning with reproductions of the earliest architectural drawings, along with skyline views and numerous photographic portraits. Also included are splendid halftones of photographs by Lewis W. Hine, whose images of workers reflect a lifelong interest in the link between laborer and machine. Art Deco design throughout, with dramatic silver, black and gold cover illustration.  Text and illustrations fine, slight edge-wear to fragile wrappers. A near-fine copy.