Defectives, Epileptics: United States. Massachusetts. Palmer. State Hospital for Epileptics: Men's North Hospital. 1905

Editor: This photograph by Woodhead Studio shows the Men's North Hospital at the State Hospital for Epileptics in Palmer, Massachusetts. It's…stark. What strikes you about this image? Curator: The institutional architecture, its scale and the implied social control, is quite telling. Consider the photograph’s role. Who was the intended audience, and what purpose did this image serve in shaping public perception of mental health care? Editor: Maybe it was meant to show progress? The building seems well-kept. Curator: Perhaps. But what does "well-kept" signify in this context? Does it imply genuine care or simply reinforce societal desires for order and segregation? How does photography, as a medium, participate in constructing these narratives? Editor: I hadn't considered how the image itself could be part of the story. Curator: Exactly. It invites us to critically examine the power dynamics inherent in representation and the social function of institutions.