Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2000/01/28

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Subject: Re: [Leica] Silver gelatin and crayon resist
From: "Mike Durling" <durling@widomaker.com>
Date: Fri, 28 Jan 2000 18:43:37 -0500

The term that museum curators use that really drives me nuts, and I work for
a museum, is "object".  It's what they call anything they collect.  "This
object, from the mid 17th century exhibits qualities of ..."  You get the
drift.  Part of this culture we live in where you don't call anything what
it is.  Like "chocalate flavored confection" or "spread" instead of
margarine.

Mike D

<snip>
>Galleries and museums typically use variants of formal names to describe
>the technique used to make the print. "Platinum" is usually used to
>denote any print made on platinum, platinum/palladium, or even pure
>palladium emulsion. "Silver gelatin" is simply a fancy name for any
>ordinary black-and-white paper.
>
>It's worth noting that several of the terms they conventionally use,
>while not strictly wrong, are not really used anywhere else. They appear
>to be more descriptive than they actually are.
>
>I was amused the other day when my little boy brought home his entry to
>the elementary school art contest, and the art teacher had filled out a
>very serious little "museum card" describing his technique as "crayon
>resist" <g>. It's just part of that cultute, is all.
>
>--Mike
>
</snip>