Untitled (man and woman on chairs, people standing behind) c. 1950

Curator: This photograph, attributed to Lucian and Mary Brown, is simply titled "Untitled (man and woman on chairs, people standing behind)." It’s a modest 10 by 12 cm print housed at the Harvard Art Museums. Editor: It feels like a faded memory. The inversion of tones lends a spectral air to the wedding party, unsettling yet somehow touching. Curator: Indeed, the negative's materiality emphasizes the photographic process itself. Who were these people, what was the labor involved? How does the image reflect social conventions? Editor: It's a poignant reminder of the ephemeral nature of such occasions, as fleeting as a photographic exposure. Curator: Perhaps. It prompts reflection on image making, family, and memory. Editor: Yes, even the simple act of viewing becomes an act of remembering, or imagining, histories unknown.