Untitled 1857

Curator: Here we have an 1857 photograph by Gustave Le Gray, simply titled "Untitled," rendered in gelatin silver print. Editor: It feels unsettlingly… regimented. All those identical figures stretching toward the horizon create a feeling of… enforced order. What can you tell me about it? Curator: Le Gray was a master of early photographic techniques, as evidenced by the astonishing tonal range achieved in this silver print. Note how the details of each uniform are meticulously rendered, despite the vast number of subjects. It showcases the potential of photography as a documentary tool, but also, as an aesthetic medium. Editor: The "documentary" aspect is what gets me. The picture smacks of militarization. What are these figures enacting? Who authorized their photographic reproduction? I bet they are enacting dominance through enforced social control… what social narratives were at play at that moment? Curator: It's important not to forget the compositional balance. Observe how the diagonal lines of the soldiers converge, creating a visual path towards the horizon. This sense of depth is achieved using early photographic methods. There is almost no comparable sense of perspective during this period! Editor: And toward *what* horizon? Imperialist expansion? It is imperative we talk about its implications and its significance concerning empire and enforced order. Do these figures exemplify and advance militarism, class division, enforced discipline, and inequality in this period? I cannot avoid these interpretations! Curator: Perhaps… but let's not discount the visuality of the image. We must also appreciate it as a product of its medium, technique, tonal range, perspective, etc. Editor: To look at the arrangement or tonal range *without* considering the military-industrial complex they helped materialize... it feels so empty. So many of the tools in art are simply reinforcing certain political points. The picture has, regrettably, opened a new way for me to explore art within structures of domination. Thank you. Curator: And for me, too, it’s important to see how Le Gray balanced aesthetics with new technology of the time. Thank you.