Devil's Foot Ball near the Deep Fill 1903

Curator: The photograph before us is titled "Devil's Foot Ball near the Deep Fill," a stereo card captured by Henry Hamilton Bennett in 1903. Editor: My first thought is how it conveys a sense of silent awe. The stark monochrome palette coupled with that imposing rock formation truly gives off an almost spiritual vibe. Curator: That imposing rock is, of course, the "Devil's Foot Ball." It’s an arresting visual symbol, one that calls to mind the raw power and primordial mystery that land formations possess in our collective memory. Its unusual, rounded form, mirrored in the still water, carries an almost mythical weight, evoking images of pagan rituals or forgotten folklore. Editor: Bennett, as a photographer operating during the Pictorialist movement, frequently aimed for artistic effects. What’s fascinating is that it avoids the painterly manipulations some Pictorialists favored; this work feels much closer to a straight-ahead landscape, giving it an authenticity tied to American expansion and its impact on the natural world. Do you get the same sense, Iconographer? Curator: I see both. The composition – the placement of the boulder, the figures in the canoe, the subtle reflection on the water – feels deliberately arranged to convey not merely a visual likeness but also a particular atmosphere and mood. The symbolic density here seems palpable: the towering rock juxtaposed with the small figures speaks to humankind’s enduring relationship with nature's overwhelming scale. This speaks to a shared cultural anxiety over nature’s permanence in the face of social transformation. Editor: Right, the scale definitely enhances that. This stereograph also functioned as popular culture; allowing people far and wide to see what the Wisconsin Dells had to offer as a tourist destination. So there is a bit of built in tension here that certainly encourages some active thought, even to this day. Curator: Ultimately, Bennett's choice to present this particular rock formation in this specific manner underscores the way landscapes have always been imbued with symbolic meanings and narratives—stories we continue to interpret and project onto the world around us. Editor: And that's why it is still fascinating today; even after all the changes we have gone through, there is still something primal at work in its form and cultural appeal.