Gezicht op Middlesex street te Lowell before 1892

This photograph of Middlesex Street in Lowell was created with a camera, a fairly new device at the time. The silver gelatin printing process transforms light into a tangible image, using chemistry to capture a moment in time. The photograph’s monochrome palette and sharp focus provides a glimpse into the social and economic life of an early industrialized American city. The built environment appears to be solid and permanent, reflective of the capitalist structures that support it. Look closely, though, and you’ll notice the dirt street, the horse-drawn carriages – evidence of a society in transition. The people in the foreground, perhaps workers or shoppers, are captured incidentally. The photographer’s real subject seems to be the modern urban landscape itself. By focusing on the city, rather than the individual, the image speaks to the changing nature of labor, politics, and consumption. The photograph is evidence of the artist’s engagement with the world, and a new way of seeing it.