Untitled (men spraying fake snow onto Christmas trees) c. 1960

Editor: This is an untitled photograph by Jack Gould, showing men spraying fake snow onto Christmas trees. The sheer artificiality of it all is striking. What’s your interpretation? Curator: Notice the labour, the means of production on display. These aren’t pristine, untouched trees, but commodities being manufactured. The "snow" itself is a material transformation, a product. Editor: So you're focusing on the making of the image itself? Curator: Exactly. Consider the social context. This image prompts us to question how ideas of nature are manufactured and commodified, much like these very trees. What does Christmas *mean* here? Editor: I never thought about the work behind the holiday display. Curator: Indeed, questioning the labor and materials transforms the image.