Untitled (girl sitting in chair with dolls) c. 1950

Curator: This photograph, of unknown date, titled *Untitled (girl sitting in chair with dolls)*, is credited to Lucian and Mary Brown and is now held in the Harvard Art Museums. Editor: It possesses an unsettling quality, doesn't it? The stark inversion of light and shadow evokes a sense of unease and perhaps even alienation. Curator: Indeed, the tonal inversion disrupts our usual perception. The composition is intriguing, featuring a young girl and her dolls arranged within an interior space. Editor: The dolls themselves are fascinating. Given the history of dolls being stand-ins for little girls in art, I cannot help but wonder about how the Brown's—who are essentially absent from the history books—use this image to comment on girlhood and domesticity. Curator: Perhaps the Browns are playing with the formal elements of representation itself. Editor: Yes, and this could be a powerful, critical statement on the representation of women. Curator: Certainly, viewing this work has given me much to consider in terms of its construction of childhood and femininity. Editor: For me, it highlights the necessity of bringing under-recognized artists like Lucian and Mary Brown into broader art historical discussions.