Untitled (large truck carrying "Farm House Frozen Pies") c. 1950

This photograph by Robert Burian shows a large truck emblazoned with the words "Farm House Frozen Pies." Photography is of course a chemical process, one that changed the nature of visual culture in the 20th century, by introducing a seemingly objective mode of reproduction. The truck itself is also a study in materiality. From its heavy rubber tires to its riveted metal body, it speaks to the industrial labor necessary to create our built environment. The scale of the vehicle suggests a vast infrastructure of production and distribution, with farm produce converted into manufactured goods and shipped across long distances. Consider the hands that harvested the fruit, processed it, and froze it. Then the factory workers who assembled the truck, and the driver who transports these pies on the road. Burian’s photograph encourages us to reflect on the complex networks of labor, consumption, and technology that shape our everyday lives, making us consider what is unseen in this image.