Untitled (large turkey farm) c. 1950

Editor: This arresting gelatin silver print, "Untitled (large turkey farm)" by Lucian and Mary Brown, depicts a dense gathering of turkeys under what appears to be a long shed. The sheer number of birds is striking. What can we say about the means of production in a piece like this? Curator: The photographic process itself becomes a means of documenting industrial scale food production. Consider the labor involved in raising so many animals and how that's translated into this small format image. Does this image prompt you to think about the system of consumption it supports? Editor: It definitely does. Seeing them like this, it's hard not to think about where they're going. I hadn't considered the photograph itself as part of that system. Curator: Precisely. And by focusing on the material conditions – the farm, the photographic materials, the audience – we can uncover a layered understanding of the work. Editor: That's a perspective shift for me. Thanks! Curator: My pleasure. It's all about looking beyond the surface.