Line of men inside a division office of the State Employment Service office at San Francisco, California, waiting to register for unemployment benefits  c. 1938 - 1969

Dorothea Lange made this gelatin silver print, depicting a line of men waiting to register for unemployment benefits, in San Francisco. The gelatin silver process, dominant for much of the 20th century, involves coating paper with light-sensitive silver halide crystals. When exposed to light through a negative, these crystals darken, creating a photographic image. This process allowed for mass production, aligning with the rise of photojournalism and documentary photography during the Depression era. The print’s materiality—its smooth surface and tonal range—belies the stark reality of the scene. Lange’s composition, taken from an elevated perspective, emphasizes the men’s shared plight. Their dark suits and hats, rendered in shades of gray, blend together, highlighting their anonymity and collective experience of economic hardship. While the photograph itself is a mass-produced object, it also serves as a potent reminder of the human cost of economic systems. The image challenges traditional notions of fine art by using the techniques of mass media to expose a stark social reality.