Untitled (Kingston Church) 1930

Editor: Here we have Arnold Wiltz’s “Untitled (Kingston Church),” created in 1930 using pencil, a drawing and print. It's striking how the textures achieved with just pencil create such depth and solidity. What elements of material and production techniques are significant here? Curator: Let’s consider the choice of pencil. It’s an accessible medium, suggesting a democratized artistic process. A print enables wider circulation, moving the image beyond the realm of unique, precious objects. How might this challenge established hierarchies between fine art and mass production? Editor: It’s fascinating to consider the social context; using pencil allows greater participation in making images. The scene itself—a church—could also symbolize this reaching-out. Do you think this choice democratizes artistic creation in this image? Curator: It also points towards a critical exploration of the relationship between labour, artistic production, and consumption in a seemingly straightforward cityscape. What assumptions might we have about "fine art" and the materials from which it is typically made? Consider also the urban setting, hinting at social complexities often unseen in the countryside. Editor: It really shifts the focus! Looking closer, I wonder if Wiltz’s focus was on creating art that engages with social ideas. What labor goes into capturing and mass-producing a place like a Kingston church? Curator: Precisely! And the print medium emphasizes the process, the labor. Do you see this now more in terms of the everyday, blurring lines of appreciation between the high and low? Editor: I never would have thought about that when initially looking at the image. This consideration on production, consumption, and material provides new meaning! Curator: Agreed, and the "untitled" aspect seems deliberate, redirecting focus toward method, substance, and cultural interpretations.