Cumnor Hurst before 1912

Curator: Materially speaking, this albumen silver print, “Cumnor Hurst” by Henry Taunt, made before 1912, captures more than just a landscape. Consider the albumen process itself – using egg whites to bind the silver to the paper. Think about that in terms of labor, and class. What stands out to you? Editor: It has a melancholic quality, maybe it is the stark contrast of light and shadow. And knowing that albumen printing involved so much manual preparation definitely shifts my perspective, it connects the image more to a specific time. Curator: Exactly. The hand of the photographer, the specific materiality of the process – all become integral to understanding its impact. Taunt wasn't just capturing a scene; he was engaging with specific materials shaped by particular socio-economic factors, don't you think? How does understanding the physical production affect your reading of the photograph itself? Editor: It definitely makes me consider his intended audience. Was he documenting an idealized rural life for a consumer class? Or perhaps capturing a disappearing landscape as industrialization progressed? It must have had great significance at the time of its production! Curator: Precisely! And it’s this tension, between the romantic ideal and the reality of industrial encroachment, that gives the image its enduring power. What do you think the choice of material conveys in the context of other photographic printing methods at the time? Editor: Perhaps he selected a time-consuming method as a means to suggest handcraft, perhaps as an antithesis of mass-produced images? Curator: Wonderful. It’s by unpacking these layers of materiality, labor, and context, that we can appreciate how “Cumnor Hurst” acts as a document shaped as much by social forces as by aesthetic intention. Editor: I never thought I could dive this deep! I'll definitely be checking how pieces were created and in what social and cultural background. Thanks!