Untitled (men wearing suits standing in a police line-up) 1962

Curator: This is an untitled work by Jack Gould, a small color photograph depicting men in suits. It’s held in the Harvard Art Museums collection. Editor: It’s striking how staged it feels, a bit like a police line-up, and the men are so formally dressed. The suits lend an air of respectability. Curator: Perhaps that's the point. Suits, especially in the mid-20th century, symbolized power, conformity, and societal expectations. This image seems to play with those loaded symbols. Editor: Absolutely. The backdrop, with its horizontal lines, further flattens the space, almost like a mugshot. It’s hard to ignore the power dynamics at play, the potential for judgment. Curator: Indeed. The photograph's ambiguity invites us to consider the symbolism of the suit, the implications of surveillance, and the ways in which appearances can be both revealing and deceptive. Editor: Seeing this image, I’m left contemplating how clothing and context work together to shape our perceptions and assumptions.