Divers snoepgoed, reclame voor snoepfabrikant Brandle and Smith Co., Philadelphia 1915

Curator: This photograph from around 1915, created by the Schadde Brothers Studio, is actually an advertisement for the Brandle and Smith Company, a candy manufacturer in Philadelphia. What do you think, visually? Editor: Well, immediately, there's this stark, almost clinical presentation that contrasts strangely with the playful subject matter. The composition, with its rigid rows and clear labels, reminds me of scientific specimen displays. Curator: It does, doesn't it? That orderliness speaks to the burgeoning advertising industry at the time, aiming to present a sense of quality control and standardized production to consumers. You see these "sour balls" and "butter balls" meticulously arranged… Editor: And the even, shadowless lighting gives them a strange, almost artificial perfection. Notice how each sphere seems individually lit and placed, highlighting their texture and color variations, but there’s also something cold about the whole setup. Curator: Precisely. Think about the context. This was a time when industrial food production was rapidly evolving. Ads like these helped reassure the public. Each candy becomes an object of desire through its careful representation, and by its accessibility in consumption. The photograph creates this image of reliability within an early twentieth century audience—almost in order to establish trust through visual repetition. Editor: Yes, but the colors also feel somehow muted, considering we are talking about candy! They’re lovely, but a little… restrained. Like a pastel dream of sweets. And how the typography clearly identifies and distinguishes the candies with pricing from other contemporary photography—a purely practical intention, or does it hold something beyond simple marketing strategy? Curator: That’s advertising: clear pricing provides consumers transparency, a powerful persuasive and marketing method. Think about who may be consuming such products and under what circumstances they might purchase such novel goods, that transparency also serves to attract repeat consumers. The strategic purpose in providing simple consumer insight to products helps construct accessibility and trust that’s deeply influential and still present today! Editor: I still think the formal decisions that constructed this photographic strategy provided not only access, but helped codify desire for Brandle and Smith’s Company in turn of the century consumption. A simple yet profound arrangement.