"Mr. & Mrs..."
1930s
Medium
gelatin silver print
Dimensions
image: 12.7 × 8 cm (5 × 3 1/8 in.) sheet: 13.8 × 8.7 cm (5 7/16 × 3 7/16 in.) mount: 16.3 × 9.5 cm (6 7/16 × 3 3/4 in.)
Classification
Photograph
Department
CPH
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Gift of Mary and Dan Solomon
Accession Number
2019.170.22
Art Historical Context
"Mr. & Mrs..." is charming gelatin silver print by William J. Rensler created in the 1930s and now housed in the National Gallery Art's Department of Photographs. This intimate portrait, measuring just 12.7 × 8 cm, captures a couple in a candid moment, evoking the everyday lives of Americans during the Great Depression era. The modest scale—similar to a personal snapshot—suggests it may have been part of Rensler's documentation of ordinary people, reflecting the period's growing interest in vernacular photography. Gelatin silver prints, the dominant medium of the time, allowed for sharp detai...