Picnic, Long Island, New York
Date1994, printed c. 2002
Artist
Ralph Gibson
(American photographer, born 1939)
MediumChromogenic color print
Dimensionsimage: 18 × 12 in. (45.7 × 30.5 cm)
sheet: 20 × 15 15/16 in. (50.8 × 40.5 cm)
sheet: 20 × 15 15/16 in. (50.8 × 40.5 cm)
Credit LineGift of Daniel Calacci, 2003
Object number2003-30.7
On View
Not on viewClassificationsPHOTOGRAPH
Label TextThe earliest document describing (with amazement) the use of a fork dates to the 11th century and catalogues its employment by the wife of the Venetian Doge Domenico Selvo. Most people did their eating with their hands. The only table utensils were knives and spoons and their use was limited. At first, the fork was resisted as a symbol of the devil since it used a similar design to the pitchfork. Then its functional advantages were challenged. Next it had to find an audience among the influential and finally, someone had to figure out how to produce it at a price that most people could afford. In the end, it took over 800 years for the fork to be fully accepted in Western society.—Burt Wolf
