New Year's Eve Party, American Legion, Bangor, Pennsylvania 1980

Larry Fink captured this photograph at an American Legion in Bangor, Pennsylvania. The most striking symbols are, of course, the party hats, evoking a sense of festivity and transition as the old year turns into the new. These hats, seemingly simple, have a lineage stretching back to ancient rituals celebrating cycles of time. Think of the Roman Saturnalia, where headwear symbolized temporary social inversions and revelry. Similarly, in medieval carnivals, crowns and caps denoted a sanctioned period of playful chaos. Yet, observe how this motif has shifted. Here, the hats are mass-produced, almost disposable, reflecting a modern, commercialized form of celebration. But the underlying impulse remains: to mark time, release societal constraints, and embrace collective joy. It’s as if our subconscious yearns for those ancient, ritualistic breaks, finding expression even in these humble paper crowns. The image resonates with a deep-seated human need to periodically upend the mundane, a tradition that, despite its evolving forms, continues to engage us on a profound level.