Untitled (girl sitting on couch) c. 1950

Editor: This untitled photograph by John Howell shows a girl on a couch. The grayscale tones give it an eerie, almost dreamlike quality. What symbols or deeper meanings emerge for you when you view it? Curator: The reversed tonality makes the girl almost spectral. Notice how the window blinds behind her mimic the bars of a cage, both literally and figuratively. Editor: So, it's about confinement? Curator: Perhaps. Or the tension between interiority and the outside world. The girl's averted gaze, combined with her formal dress, evokes repressed emotions. Editor: It’s like a glimpse into a lost memory. I will never see this photo the same way again. Curator: Indeed; images can be cultural time capsules.