See the Work
Where to experience Russell Lee's photographs in person, and resources to learn more
Permanent Collections
Institutions holding Russell Lee's original prints and negatives, plus the public-domain archive these images are drawn from.
Library of Congress
Washington, D.C.
The Prints & Photographs Division holds the FSA/OWI collection — thousands of Russell Lee's Depression-era photographs. All are in the public domain and available online.
Browse OnlineLibrary of Congress
Washington, D.C.
Holds Lee's FSA/Resettlement Administration negatives and prints, including the Pie Town, San Augustine, and Hidalgo County work, in the public-domain FSA/OWI collection.
Learn MoreNational Archives and Records Administration
Washington, D.C.
Holds the more than 4,000 photographs Lee made in 1946-1947 for the federal medical survey of the bituminous coal industry.
Learn MoreBriscoe Center for American History, University of Texas at Austin
Austin, Texas
Holds the Russell Lee Photograph Collection, a major archive of his prints and negatives spanning his career.
Learn MoreHarry Ransom Center, University of Texas at Austin
Austin, Texas
Holds an inventory of Russell Lee's photography collection and related materials documenting his life and work.
Learn MoreThe Wittliff Collections, Texas State University
San Marcos, Texas
Holds a Russell Lee collection among its holdings of Southwestern and Texas photography.
Learn MoreMajor Exhibitions
Notable retrospectives and exhibitions of Russell Lee's work.
Power & Light: Russell Lee's Coal Survey
National Archives Museum, Washington, D.C.
An exhibition of Lee's 1946-1947 photographs documenting the lives and working conditions of American coal miners and their families.
Far From Main Street: Three Photographers in Depression-Era New Mexico
Museum of New Mexico, Santa Fe
An exhibition pairing Lee's Pie Town work with that of Dorothea Lange and John Collier to portray Depression-era New Mexico.
Books & Films About Russell Lee
Essential resources for understanding Russell Lee's life and work.
Essential Reading
The definitive biography of Russell Lee, drawing extensively on the Library of Congress photography archive to trace his full life and career.
A collection of Lee's photographs drawn from his personal archive at the University of Texas at Austin, with essays placing his career in context.
A study of New Mexico through the FSA work of three photographers, including Lee's celebrated Pie Town series.
Films & Other Resources
The federal report on health and living conditions in the coal industry, illustrated with Russell Lee's survey photographs.
A documentary film on Russell Lee's life and work by filmmaker Ann Mundy, who studied with him at the University of Texas at Austin.
Online Resources
Explore the Archive
Browse 1454 Russell Lee photographs from the Library of Congress.
View All Photographs