Untitled c. 1930s

Editor: This is an "Untitled" photograph by Caroline Whiting Fellows, made around the 1930s. It has such a playful, almost childlike quality. The combination of Christmas ornaments and candy canes on geometric color blocks really jumps out. What do you see in this piece? Curator: What immediately strikes me is the conscious manipulation of commercial imagery and the emerging visual language of mass culture in the early to mid-20th century. Consider the role photography played in advertising during this era; images like this were becoming increasingly pervasive. Editor: So you think she’s commenting on the commercialization of holidays? Curator: Potentially. Fellows was working during a time when consumerism was becoming more entrenched in American culture. Using commonplace objects like ornaments and candy, she’s subtly highlighting the role these items played. And look at the background – it seems very artificial. Does this strike you as a real holiday scene, or something else? Editor: Definitely not real! It feels staged. The strong colors and graphic shapes make it almost like a magazine ad. Curator: Exactly! Fellows is actively constructing an image that blurs the line between art and advertisement, hinting at how pervasive these images were becoming. And even questioning if we could see this artwork without any influence from Pop Art? Editor: That's fascinating! I hadn’t considered it in the context of early advertising. I guess it really makes you think about how images shape our understanding of traditions and celebrations. Curator: Precisely! Fellows offers a glimpse into a changing world, one where the lines between art, commerce, and cultural tradition were becoming increasingly blurred.