Robert Gould Shaw Memorial c. 1973 - 2008

Curator: What a powerful image! It’s Richard Benson's photograph, taken sometime between 1973 and 2008, of the Robert Gould Shaw Memorial. The original is a bronze sculpture, so it's an image of a sculpture, through a photograph. My first thought is, what a weight is visualized here. Editor: Exactly! I am instantly struck by the repetitive forms: the rifles, the soldiers, the tightly-rolled blankets… mass production meets military might. You see it everywhere in the industrial revolution; in weaponry, and the uniform itself as it tries to diminish individuality. Curator: You know, when I look at it, I think it’s more than just mass production. Look at their faces, weary, yet resolute. It really captures the quiet dignity, the internal fire, of these men marching towards an uncertain future. What I see here is time. The patience for a slow photograph in black and white, rendering something massive into the graspable, a moment to think about time moving forward with its unstoppable force. The photo itself is of a sculpture about real human life; all are present at once. It speaks of deep commitment and sacrifice. Editor: I agree, commitment is the right word here, and how the image renders something almost classical. You can clearly see the casting seams on the rifles; these remind me that beyond metaphor, someone meticulously worked to bring each element into being. There are craft processes being undertaken here that reflect those endured by those men as they marched. How different is that material burden of this war when translated into mass media? Curator: Oh, so true. The textures are fantastic. Benson truly captured something ephemeral out of the material object. Do you know that bronze almost breathes? He made it immortal in this still moment, just like these men live again as ideas, as metaphors for honor and perseverance in a time of adversity, now fixed forever by a lens. Editor: Well said! This image provides not just a moment of beauty, but forces a profound reflection on the labor and historical forces embedded within, what's so compelling about this kind of history, about those textures you see is how tangible those notions become! Curator: Yes, and there are those repeated coils too, that look like rolled canvas, like an echo from an endless series of marches, yet contained. Thanks, it was a gift. Editor: Mine too, absolutely. Thanks!