Untitled (government telephones with many buttons) c. 1950

Editor: This is Jack Gould's small, square photograph, *Untitled (government telephones with many buttons)*. The muted colors and the close-up view of the switchboard are giving me a slightly uneasy feeling. What do you see in this piece? Curator: Well, I see a relic of the Cold War. The labels – NORAD, USAF, SAC – these were all vital components of the American military command structure. This image, however mundane it appears, is deeply embedded in the socio-political anxieties of the time. Editor: So, the banality of the object contrasts with the importance of its function? Curator: Precisely. Gould is capturing the quiet, bureaucratic face of immense power and potential destruction. It's a fascinating commentary on the public perception of government during that era. Editor: I see it now! The ordinariness is what makes it so unsettling. Curator: Exactly, an eerie glimpse behind the curtain.