Lausanne: Pacifist Count Condenhove-Halergi with wife Ida Roland, Dr. Stern-Rubarth and Mrs. Erich Salomon c. 1930s

Curator: This is Erich Salomon’s photograph "Lausanne: Pacifist Count Condenhove-Halergi with wife Ida Roland, Dr. Stern-Rubarth and Mrs. Erich Salomon," currently residing at the Harvard Art Museums. Editor: My first thought? It's so... staged. Like everyone's holding their breath for the shot, trying to look intellectual at dinner. Curator: Salomon was a pioneer of candid photography, so this seeming artificiality actually speaks to the social constraints he was navigating. He's capturing a moment of diplomacy, self-presentation and all. Editor: It almost makes me want to set the table and photograph my friends, capturing that weird, performative realness we all inhabit. Curator: Consider the historical backdrop – Salomon, a Jewish photographer, documenting European figures advocating for peace just before the rise of fascism. The photo becomes a poignant document of a fading hope. Editor: Right. There is something deeply unsettling knowing what history held for these people. The photograph gains such depth and resonance when viewed through that lens. Curator: It’s a deceptively simple image that reflects complex social and political tensions. Editor: Absolutely. The image's quietness is haunted by the future, I feel almost a sense of foreboding.