Untitled (men playing cards) 1947

Curator: This photogram, currently titled "Untitled (men playing cards)" in the Harvard Art Museums’ collection, captures a moment of leisure. It’s attributed to John Howell. Editor: It’s striking how the negative image gives this an almost spectral quality. The men gathered around the table seem suspended in time. Curator: Card games are potent symbols of chance and fate, reflecting deeper anxieties around risk, reward, and social hierarchy. What stories are being played out here? Editor: I'm interested in the material reality—the table itself, the cards, the photographic process. It speaks to a specific class engaging in leisure afforded by their socio-economic position. Curator: The act of playing cards can be seen as a microcosm of societal dynamics, mirroring power structures and the human desire for control. Editor: And the photographic medium itself—how it both documents and obscures the truth of that moment. This image provides a material connection to the past. Curator: It’s fascinating how even a simple game of cards can hold such layered meanings. Editor: It makes you wonder about the tangible conditions that allowed such pastimes to flourish.