Untitled (portrait of woman with long hair wearing silver bracelet) after 1940

This silver gelatin print, by Paul Gittings, captures a portrait of a woman. Silver gelatin prints like this one involve a complex chemical process. The artist starts with a light-sensitive paper coated with silver halide crystals, which darkens when exposed to light. Through controlled exposure, development, and fixing, the artist coaxes an image into being. In Gittings's image, we see a woman gazing upward. The light catches the soft waves of her hair, the delicate curve of her neck, and the subtle details of her silver bracelet. It speaks to the labor involved, and the knowledge of chemistry required to transform raw materials into art. The silver bracelet she wears appears modern and machine-made, suggesting her relative wealth. Understanding this process encourages us to consider the image not just as a depiction, but as a record of a specific set of actions, choices, and labor. This brings photography into the fold of craft, and compels us to expand the definition of art.