Untitled (girl in long dress standing between chair and table with flowers) c. 1940

Paul Gittings created this gelatin silver print of a girl in a dress at an unknown date. The image is a study in contrasts, the girl's youth juxtaposed with the formality of the setting. The composition creates meaning through its visual codes. In the United States during the early to mid-20th century, portrait photography was becoming increasingly democratized. No longer just for the wealthy elite, middle-class families began commissioning portraits to document important life events and to project an image of respectability. The girl's formal dress, the ornate chair, and the flowers on the table all speak to aspirations of refinement and social status. The inclusion of these elements suggests that the photograph functions as a record of social mobility. As historians, we might use census records, fashion history, and photography archives to better understand the social context. Art is contingent on the social and institutional conditions in which it is made.