Response: The Significance of Context

Petit's Mobil Station, Cherry Hill, New Jersey

Telephone Booth, 3 A.M., Rahway, New Jersey

Two Amish Boys, Lancaster, PA

The first photograph by George Tice was taken in 1974. It is titled Petit's Mobil Station, Cherry Hill, New Jersey. If I were to stumble upon this image in a gallery, I imagine that it would be shown alongside others by the same artist, or with similarly themed photographs. I think that within these parameters, my interpretation would be the purest, the least influenced by context. This is for two reasons. The first is, surrounded by like photographs, these other images would echo my impressions of Tice's Petit's Mobil Station, reinforcing the mood. For example, if the exhibit was showing exclusively Tice's work, I might see this photograph of a Mobil Station between his 1962 image, Two Amish Boys, Lancaster, PA and his photo, Telephone Booth, 3 A.M., Rahway, New Jersey. The former might support the vaguely nostalgic feeling of the clearly retro photograph. In contrast, the latter lends a more desolate, eerie quality to my impression of the original. The second reason that this environment seems the least influential is that the gallery's primary purpose is to showcase the artist and his work. Unlike the other conditions, there seems to be no larger design, nothing more to be achieved than the viewer's contemplation.

If this image were featured in a newspaper, the writer might have chosen to include the image to illustrate her point and further the reader's understanding. For example, the author might be writing an article comparing the gas crisis of the 1970's to our relationship with foreign oil today. Under these circumstances, we might see the photograph as a grim reminder of troubling economic times. Despite the specificity of this instance, I think that ultimately the image would serve the news story, so that although the viewer might gather the same impressions, their interpretation would inevitably be colored by the context of the article.

In a history textbook, this image might play a similar role as it would in a newspaper: both contexts use the photo as a vehicle for social commentary. For example, in our American history textbook, the early 1970's are described as a period of economic depression. The historian might depict this reality with Tice's photo. In this case, the image might no longer recall the same nostalgia in the viewer, as he would associate it with misfortune. Thus, once again the viewer's interpretation is not independent of the context; he cannot separate his own understanding from this foreign influence.

Interestingly, if this image were a graphic on a movie poster, the viewer's perception of the image would inform her anticipation of the film. In this scenario, I might see a poster with the title "The Disappearance of Charlotte Summer," and beneath these words, Tice's photo. In this case I would assume that the poster advertised a thriller, and thinking that the image depicted the scene of a terrible crime, this same photo would seem incredibly sinister. On the other hand, if the title was more benign, like "The Life and Times of Thomas Snap," then I would probably infer that the movie takes place in an earlier era, without feeling the same anticipatory fear.