Weber-rivier stroomt door Devil's Gate, Utah 1868

Curator: Let’s turn our attention to "Weber-rivier stroomt door Devil's Gate, Utah," a gelatin-silver print captured by William Henry Jackson in 1868. Editor: It feels…bleak, almost lunar. A study in rock and muted light. I can almost feel the dry heat radiating off the image. Curator: Absolutely. The image highlights the impact of westward expansion on the American landscape and considers the very labor that was reshaping the physical landscape. Think about the sheer effort to haul equipment, to process images on site. Editor: Yes, but think of Jackson out there lugging that heavy camera and those glass plates—a true pioneer. It is incredible he did it over 150 years ago! It brings an incredible sense of isolation and adventure. Do you think the lack of color helps emphasize that raw, untamed feel? Curator: It does. It's a photograph, but its tonal range mimics watercolor techniques, obscuring some clarity. He has manipulated the print through development or choice of materials, which gives it that unique ethereal quality that emphasizes nature's indifference to the endeavors of capital, even domination. It feels both monumental and strangely fragile. Editor: "Devil’s Gate"—with a name like that, it's meant to inspire awe and maybe a little dread. The name alone adds so much, don’t you think? Curator: Indeed, but it could also have served as marketing in an attempt to bring the sublime views to more Easterners. Now the materials themselves—the gelatin silver process—would have been fairly new and industrial even then, indicative of technological advancement in image-making. Editor: Knowing it was produced to both promote expansion and show an amazing sublime landscape certainly shifts my point of view a little. Curator: In a sense, it speaks volumes about how technology intersects with perception and ideology in representing space and shaping American identity. Editor: Now when I see the "Weber River flowing through Devil's Gate," I see more than a vista, more than one guy’s adventure. There is both a promise and price here. Curator: Exactly. These historical photographs challenge us to reconcile our understanding and see them as contested terrain in American history.