Saddle River, NJ Possibly 1978 - 1982

Editor: Here we have Joe Maloney's "Saddle River, NJ", a photograph, likely from between 1978 and 1982. It's a dense image of trees framing a view of a lawn. It has a kind of staged feeling to it. What's your read on this piece? Curator: What strikes me is the perspective – a slightly elevated vantage point, almost voyeuristic, looking into someone's private space. It makes me wonder about access and privilege. Whose perspective are we adopting here? Consider the historical context: suburban photography often served to reinforce ideas of idealized domesticity, particularly in advertising and real estate. Does Maloney subvert or reinforce this? Editor: That’s interesting. I was just thinking of it as a landscape. Curator: Exactly! Landscape photography is never just about pretty views. It's always been tied to notions of land ownership, control, and national identity. Think about the role of landscape imagery in the 19th century during westward expansion in America. Maloney’s choice of framing, with those dense trees in the foreground, hints at a barrier, perhaps a critique of the exclusionary nature of suburban life. Does it invite us in, or keep us out? Editor: It's a little of both, maybe? There's definitely an element of keeping us at bay... Curator: Precisely! And consider that time period – late 70s, early 80s. Suburban development was booming, often at the expense of natural habitats. This photograph might be a quiet commentary on that tension. Perhaps an early form of environmental consciousness embedded in the landscape genre. Editor: I hadn’t thought about that, but that makes total sense given when it was taken! Thanks! Curator: Of course! Seeing art in context reveals so much more than just aesthetics.