Focus Scientific, Place Bell, Ottawa, Canada c. 1976

Curator: Right, let's talk about Lynne Cohen's photograph, "Focus Scientific, Place Bell, Ottawa, Canada," taken around 1976. My first thought? It’s a little claustrophobic. Editor: Intentionally so, I think. Look at the geometric wallpaper—circles turning in on themselves. It’s hypnotic, and that stark lighting almost makes you squint. The composition really traps you. There's a powerful sense of isolation here, isn’t there? Curator: Definitely. The single chair is so deliberately placed; it evokes a feeling of waiting, or interrogation perhaps? The black and white adds to that stark feeling. And is that an umbrella in the corner... and some strange crumpled foil? What on earth could this allude to? Editor: Ah, yes, those discarded items take on meaning because of the space. Cohen photographed many institutional settings—laboratories, offices, waiting rooms—places ostensibly about progress and function. Curator: Yet imbued with… what? Existential dread? A commentary on dehumanization? Editor: Exactly! She often captured spaces that felt unsettling despite their clean lines. Circles have always symbolized enclosure and recurrence, the self. In this space, it appears a kind of modern visual echo chamber. The foil could simply be a discarded piece of lab equipment—but more significantly a reference to the failed promises of technological advancement. The photograph invites us to ponder the nature of scientific endeavour and its impact on the individual psyche. Curator: The lack of human presence only heightens the emotional impact. We are left to become the occupant of that singular, centered chair, the photograph demands our participation. A cool, almost clinical assessment of late 20th century scientific ambition, wrapped in disconcerting grey tones. Editor: Cohen gives us a masterclass in visual unease by playing with shape, symbolism, and atmosphere. Every single object and spatial configuration speaks volumes. Curator: She certainly gives us much to consider… Editor: Indeed.