Defectives, Epileptics: United States. Massachusetts. Palmer. State Hospital for Epileptics: Third year nurse. Gastric lavage under the supervisor. c. 1907

Curator: This photograph, taken by Woodhead Studio, presents a scene at the Palmer State Hospital for Epileptics in Massachusetts. It's titled "Defectives, Epileptics: United States. Massachusetts. Palmer. State Hospital for Epileptics: Third year nurse. Gastric lavage under the supervisor." Editor: My first impression is of a staged tableau. The stark white uniforms against the muted tones create a sense of clinical detachment. Curator: Indeed. The photograph is striking in its matter-of-fact depiction of a gastric lavage. The image serves as a record of medical practice and also reflects the socio-political attitudes towards epilepsy at the time. Editor: The gastric lavage bag becomes a powerful symbol here. The woman sits draped in white while a dark bucket rests beneath her chair, suggesting purity and impurity existing side-by-side. Curator: And the nurses' uniforms themselves are symbolic of authority and care, though perhaps a somewhat misguided version of it in that era. Editor: It is a powerful intersection of medical procedure, social perception, and visual symbolism. It certainly gives us something to think about. Curator: Absolutely, revealing layers of history and meaning through a single image.