Untitled (baby wearing diaper posed standing in crib) 1949

Curator: This rather haunting image at the Harvard Art Museums, captured by Martin Schweig, is simply titled "Untitled (baby wearing diaper posed standing in crib)." Editor: Eerie. It’s like a Victorian ghost photograph… that unsettling, reversed tonality, the floral wallpaper. Gives me the shivers. Curator: Indeed. The negative evokes that era, but the image also taps into universal symbols of innocence and confinement. The crib is both a safe haven and a kind of prison. Editor: Right! The baby's stuck. It's like a metaphor for the beginning of life, already defined and enclosed by expectations. Curator: The innocence, the boundaries… it's a potent mix, stirring up anxieties about freedom and destiny. Editor: Exactly. Makes you wonder about the photographer's intentions, but honestly, maybe it was just a snapshot, a family memory turned strange.