[Fox] 1886

Curator: Look at that fella, caught right on the precipice, hasn't he? Almost like he’s guarding the edge of the world. Editor: It does give that impression! We are viewing an 1886 gelatin silver print titled "[Fox]" by Ottomar Anschütz, currently residing here at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. It immediately strikes me as somber, stark, in its monochromatic stillness. Curator: Somber, you say? I see a flicker of mischief in his eye, like he’s about to dart away with some secret only he knows. It reminds me of the time I tried to outsmart a fox in my backyard; utterly hopeless endeavor! Editor: Interesting observation! I find myself considering the photographic technology available at that time. This feels staged in a way that natural history images can often be, right? I imagine he would need to be very still for the long exposure time. What this choice of representation signals about our changing view on our interactions with the animal world is fascinating! Curator: Possibly staged, yes. But it still manages to feel raw. Perhaps it's because this isn't some romanticized studio backdrop, just dirt and sky. Also, I've often thought about how an image fixes in time, like fossilized moments. It lends the scene an air of being from a long time ago. Editor: I am wondering about the choice of using gelatine silver prints—there seems to be a kind of democratisation of image creation, if we think about who gets to depict foxes, for what purposes and for what kind of audience. This sort of neutral observation can be read alongside debates around access to hunting for example. Curator: Hunting, yes! Nature as sport, as power… it also brings a sense of nature under threat, or as a domain being encroached. The lone figure almost looks vigilant of the land being stolen around him. Editor: Absolutely. The act of photographing becomes another form of taking, of possessing. Curator: That, my friend, puts a rather sobering lens on our innocent fox! Editor: And the story behind images is as important as their subjects. Something to ponder as we move on!