Ann Treer's Window, 2nd Avenue and 5th Street, New York Possibly 1957 - 1983

David Vestal made this gelatin silver print, titled "Ann Treer's Window, 2nd Avenue and 5th Street, New York", using a camera and darkroom processes. Photography has always been an interesting collision of art and industry. The camera, though a mass-produced object, is also a tool for highly personal expression. In this composition, we see four apples casually arranged on a window ledge, rendered in stark black and white. The window frame, worn and cracked, speaks to the everyday reality of urban living. Photography itself, as a medium, democratized image-making. No longer the preserve of wealthy patrons, portraiture and still life became accessible to a wider swathe of society. Vestal's image, with its grainy texture and unpretentious subject matter, invites us to appreciate the beauty in the mundane. The photograph's significance lies not just in its aesthetic qualities, but also in its accessibility, reminding us that art can be found in the most ordinary of places.