Jonge leerlingen poetsen schoenen onder een boom in Hermannsberg, nevenvestiging van Schule Schloss Salem c. 1929

Editor: This gelatin silver print from around 1929 is titled "Young students polishing shoes under a tree in Hermannsberg, a branch of the Schule Schloss Salem." It’s a pretty straightforward scene, capturing what looks like students occupied with a chore. I am interested in it’s materiality and the possible social contexts of labor at school. How do you read this piece? Curator: As a materialist, I’m drawn to the photograph’s depiction of labor and the social conditions surrounding its production. Consider the choice of gelatin silver print. What does the choice of a photographic medium, in contrast to painting or sculpture, tell us about the intent? Also, think about the implicit power structures represented in this scene, particularly focusing on those students. Editor: Hmm, I hadn't really thought about the photograph itself *as* a material object communicating meaning! So the printing process, even the paper itself, that becomes relevant… I am wondering how to put into context their activities. Curator: Exactly! And consider who might have taken this photograph, how the school possibly wanted to promote values about this sort of communal work… Or, on the other hand, what critical aspects can we identify about labour conditions? Editor: So you're saying that by looking at the material circumstances of both the image’s creation *and* the scene depicted within it, we gain insight into broader societal forces at play? It’s all interlinked somehow? Curator: Precisely! What appears as a simple activity, such as shoe polishing, can be a nexus of ideas concerning class, labor, and representation when analyzed through a materialist lens. Don't forget that there is no such thing as value-free depiction. Editor: That's given me a lot to think about regarding how we interpret not just art, but the world around us. Thanks for widening my understanding. Curator: My pleasure. I hope I have opened your eyes on the means of production that lie beneath the surface of artistic creation.