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Untitled

A work made of gelatin silver print.

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  • A work made of gelatin silver print.

Date:

1940s

Artist:

Photographer unknown
American, mid-20th century

About this artwork

This snapshot features a subject emphatically identifying themselves, writing ME on the print. Snapshots became enormously popular in the twentieth century, allowing anyone with a camera to document friends, family, and events in a casual way. Saved in albums and frames, these intimate pictures might evoke pleasant memories. But with the passing of generations, as photographs changed hands and occasionally (like this one) ended up in museums, the people who posed for these photographs might be forgotten. As if to guard against such a fate—or perhaps to point out the inadequacy of photographic representation—the sitter wrote on their picture, reminding both loved ones and museumgoers of their individual presence.

Status

Currently Off View

Department

Photography and Media

Artist

Unknown Maker

Title

Untitled

Place

United States (Object Probably made in)

Date  Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.

Made 1940–1949

Medium

Gelatin silver print

Dimensions

Image approx: 10.2 × 6 cm (4 1/16 × 2 3/8 in.); Paper: 11.1 × 6.9 cm (4 3/8 × 2 3/4 in.)

Credit Line

Gift of Peter J. Cohen

Reference Number

2017.440.4

Extended information about this artwork

Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email . Information about image downloads and licensing is available here.

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