Untitled (antelope at the zoo) c. 1950

Editor: Here we have Jack Gould's small gelatin silver print, Untitled (antelope at the zoo). The animal looks so out of place. What do you make of this image? Curator: Well, let's consider the material conditions of its making. The "Kodak Safety Film" edge marking is clearly visible. This wasn't presented as fine art initially. How does the mass production aspect and consumer-grade material affect its meaning for you? Editor: It makes it seem more like a document, or a snapshot, rather than a carefully constructed image. I see. Curator: Precisely. And the zoo, a space of controlled nature, and the antelope itself, commodified for viewing, speak volumes about our relationship with the natural world and its representation. Think of the labor involved in maintaining the zoo itself. It shifts the focus from the purely aesthetic to the socio-economic. Editor: I hadn't thought about the zoo as a site of production. Thanks for pointing that out. Curator: It changes everything once you start digging!