Jones Beach 1978

Editor: This is Elaine Mayes's photograph, *Jones Beach*. It’s a black and white photograph, and it makes me think about leisure, but in a really detached way. What do you see in this image? Curator: This feels like a record of a ritual, doesn't it? The repetitive gestures, the open space, the way the figures are dispersed… it’s a study in shared space and unspoken rules. Almost like a stage for a social drama. What feelings does the muted palette evoke for you? Editor: A sense of nostalgia, maybe, or something a little sad. It's interesting how the absence of color changes the way I perceive the activity. Curator: Yes, the absence focuses our attention on the gestures, the relationships between figures. The golf course as a modern pastoral scene. I wonder, what does the game itself symbolize? Editor: I hadn't thought of it that way, but it could be about class, or aspiration. The photograph encourages more questions than answers, for me. Curator: Exactly. I'll definitely remember to look at golf courses in a new way.