Untitled (grop portrait of Yakima Moose Association, women's club) 1974

Editor: This is an untitled photograph by Ken Whitmire Associates, a group portrait of the Yakima Moose Association's women's club. It's a fascinating image, but it's difficult to "read" being a negative. What can you tell me about the social dynamics at play here? Curator: What strikes me is the deliberate presentation of the group, likely intended for public consumption. The Moose Association, a fraternal organization, clearly wants to project an image of community involvement through its women's club. How might this photograph function as a document of civic participation? Editor: I hadn't thought of it that way, as a document of civic engagement. It speaks to the role of women’s organizations in shaping community identity and representing it to the wider public. Curator: Exactly! And it also raises questions about who is included and excluded from this representation. What does this particular framing communicate about the association's values and priorities during that time? Editor: That’s a good question, it makes me think about whose voices are being amplified and whose are perhaps being silenced in the archive. Thanks!