Buena Vista from the Court House, Mt. Princeton and Cottonwood Pass in view, Col c. 1880s

Editor: This is "Buena Vista from the Court House, Mt. Princeton and Cottonwood Pass in view, Col" a photograph by George E. Mellen. It's a sepia-toned view of a town nestled beneath snow-capped mountains. What strikes me is the contrast between the imposing natural landscape and the humble, constructed environment. What do you see in this image? Curator: I see a document of resource extraction. The photograph isn't just a landscape; it shows how the raw materials of the West – timber, land – were being transformed into a commodity. The town itself is a product of that exploitation. The material reality of building a community like this from the ground up is hard to ignore. Editor: That's interesting. I hadn't thought about the town's construction itself as a form of resource use. How might that influence our view of the mountains in the background? Curator: It reframes them. The mountains aren’t just sublime scenery; they're a source of wealth and potential for further industrial growth, right? This challenges our romanticized view of the West. Editor: I see it now. Thanks, that gives me a whole new perspective.