Untitled (bridal party portrait in studio) c. 1945

Curator: Here we have an untitled studio portrait by John Deusing, depicting a bridal party, its dimensions are roughly 8 by 10 inches. The silver gelatin print gives it a stark, almost ghostly appearance. Editor: It’s the high contrast, isn't it? That's the first thing that hits you. The figures appear so drained. It almost feels… spectral. Curator: Studio portraits, especially wedding photos, were such carefully constructed performances. Light and shadow become part of that. Think of the social pressures, the ideals of the time... Editor: And yet, the faces are so… unreadable. Is it the lighting, the negative-like rendering? It strips away so much, leaving this strange, detached tableau. Curator: Exactly. And that detachment, for me, speaks to the societal expectations placed on these individuals, on the very idea of marriage itself. It’s a fascinating tension. Editor: It is. It reveals a certain… melancholy, even in what was intended as a celebratory image. A quiet haunting.