Untitled (poodle wearing plaid dress perching on box) 1957

Editor: Here we have an untitled photograph by Jack Gould. It features a poodle in a plaid dress, perched on a box. The high contrast almost makes it look like an x-ray. What can you tell me about this image? Curator: This negative offers a compelling look at labor, class, and materiality. The making of this image itself--the photographic process, the materials used, and their availability--speak volumes. What does the act of dressing the poodle in plaid and placing it on a pedestal suggest to you? Editor: It hints at a certain status, maybe? Curator: Precisely. Consider the labor involved: the dog grooming, the sewing of the dress, the staging of the shot. It challenges the traditional boundaries between high art and everyday life, revealing a complex interplay of social forces and consumer culture. Editor: I never considered it that way! It makes you think about the resources involved. Curator: Exactly, and how those resources are distributed.