[RIGGER’S CORNER]
MEET JOE BLUM Behind the Lens of a Welder
BY PATRICIA GLYNN
Visit the construction site for the East span of the San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge and you’re sure to witness hundreds of workers, from pile drivers to carpenters to ironworkers, toiling day and night. Look closer and you might also notice, tucked away in some seemingly perilous nook and always with camera in hand, seasoned photographer Joe Blum.
T e veteran picture-taker, lauded for his images of various construction sites across the Bay Area, is a near ubiquitous presence, refusing to allow time of day or even adverse weather to preclude him from recording the historic projects development. “I’ve been on hand the past fi fteen years visually chronicling
the progression of the work,” he notes. “I’m there at all hours.” No minor feat for anyone, it’s especially noteworthy given
he is now in the seventh decade of life. But Blum is simply too enamored by his work to let age slow him down - it’s his passion, he attests. Moreover, he’s driven by one overriding goal: Blum hopes he can, through his images, show the public that there is more to the construction of a bridge than just cold, hard steel and lots of sweat equity.
“I think many people see construction as a very physical
activity. And it is. It takes tremendous strength and stamina. However, it’s also very cerebral. I don’t believe that’s fully appreciated by most people.” It’s this uncommon idea, that construction is a sort of labor
of love infused with considerable thought and meticulous attentive care on the part of its builders, which Blum strives to capture.
“I want my photos to be a tribute to the laborers. I want to honor and celebrate them as I feel they deserve recognition for their tribulations. T ey do, after all, transform the drawings and concepts of the architects and engineers into awe-inspiring, living structures. T ey rarely get proper credit for what they do.” Blum, in fact, knows much about the demands workers face.
Born in New York, he journeyed to California as a young man back in 1961 and, after studying at the University of California, began a career as a boilermaker, shipfi tter, and welder. “I got into the fi eld because I had a child and needed work. Over the course of twenty-fi ve years, I was employed in various shops and shipyards, continuing on until more and more opportunities began drifting out of the country.” At one point, Blum worked as an assistant business agent and dispatcher for the boilermakers local. In this role he was
80 MARCH-APRIL 2013 WIRE ROPE EXCHANGE
Ironworkers on Yerba Buena Island by Joseph A. Blum©
introduced to what would become a second, burgeoning career. “I would visit work sites with the business agent and would bring a camera to record everything. I began taking photos of the people and found myself fascinated by it. Today, years later, Blum has captured thousands of images
from a number of projects including the Al Zampa Memorial Bridge which spans the Carquinez Strait (“It was the fi rst bridge I photographed,” he says) and the Four Season Hotel San Francisco. Notably, his images have appeared in a number of prominent publications and places, from the Bancroft Library at the University of California, to the cover of the Crosby Group catalogue, a top-rated resource for rigging products. Refl ecting back, he fi nds no one project stands out. “It would be like a parent trying to pick which child is their favorite. Besides,” he points out, “it’s more about the workers. I’m more interested in them, in telling their story and giving them credit.” No matter what lies ahead, one thing is clear: Blum has
constructed a comprehensive collection as iconic as the structures and people which he highlights. Because of this, his own place in the history books is clearly assured. ❙
For any inquiries about Blum’s photography, please contact Joe Blum directly at:
josephblum@comcast.net
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