Untitled (man with elephant standing on tricycle) c. 1950

Curator: I find this photograph deeply unsettling. It’s simultaneously comical and… deeply sad. Editor: This is an untitled work by Jack Gould, currently held at the Harvard Art Museums. It depicts, as the title suggests, a man with an elephant standing on a tricycle. Curator: I see it now, in reverse – the negative image. And the little tricycle seems so utterly inadequate beneath the weight of that magnificent creature. It’s absurd, and yet, somehow, heartbreaking. Is it about power, control, or… vulnerability? Editor: Circus imagery often treads that line, doesn't it? Exploitation versus spectacle. Gould's photograph, even in its small format, really makes you think about the power dynamics at play, the institution of entertainment, and the ethics of display. Curator: Yes, a tiny stage for such weighty matters. I’m still stuck on that elephant’s face—a mask of performance, or something more profound? Editor: A potent reminder that images are never neutral. They carry stories, histories, and, yes, heartbreak. Curator: Exactly. I can’t shake the feeling that in Gould’s image, the elephant is not just performing, it’s… bearing witness.