Untitled (children at table drinking juice) c. 1950

Curator: This is an untitled work by Lucian and Mary Brown, part of the Harvard Art Museums collection. It pictures two children at a small table. Editor: It feels like a memory, almost dreamlike in its inverted tones. The image seems to depict a commonplace scene, yet there's a haunting quality to it. Curator: Considering the context of family photography and image-making, particularly with its domestic setting, I wonder about the power dynamics at play. Who held the camera, and whose gaze are the children subject to? Editor: Absolutely. The composition, the table acting as a barrier, might symbolize divisions. The children, perhaps siblings, are engaging in individual activities rather than interacting. It speaks to broader themes of isolation even within familial structures. Curator: And thinking about the institutional framework of the Harvard Art Museums housing this seemingly private image, it prompts us to question how personal narratives become public artifacts. Editor: It really makes you consider the narratives we construct around childhood innocence and the complex realities beneath the surface.