Untitled 1853

Editor: Here we have an untitled daguerreotype, made in 1853, likely in the United States. What strikes me is the stark contrast and how clearly it captures the texture of the clothing and equipment. What can you tell me about this image? Curator: Well, viewing this through a materialist lens, the image immediately speaks of labor. Consider the daguerreotype process itself – the meticulous preparation of the silvered copper plate, the long exposure time, and the fragility of the final image. Each step reflects the social context: the economic drive behind the gold rush and the technologies developed and deployed to achieve this goal. Editor: So you are relating the photographic process with the activity portrayed in the picture, in this case, the Gold Rush? Curator: Precisely. Look at the workers themselves, their poses stiffened from standing still for the camera, suggesting both pride and exhaustion from their intense manual labour. What kind of exploitation might they have faced and how might their position reflect that of other exploited groups at the time? What is more precious here: the gold or the documentation of a historic labour? Editor: That’s a perspective I hadn't considered, and is an excellent way of interpreting this artwork. Now, looking at their clothes, how do you think that those items or the raw material used to produce them speaks to the overall scene? Curator: Exactly. We might examine how such a specific depiction of the miners and landscape itself would spur more consumption. Are these workers creating, or being consumed by something larger? Are the materials as relevant as the historical record? Editor: It's fascinating to consider the photograph not just as a portrait, but as a record of resources, labour and commodification! Curator: Indeed! Considering the context of production really unlocks a deeper meaning in this "Untitled" image, changing the viewers' awareness of something that seems simple at first sight.