Twee vrouwen aan een tafel, waarvan één de krant leest en één slaapt before 1902

Here's what I see in this photograph by Charles Dewit of two women at a table, one reading and one asleep. I’m immediately drawn to the stillness of the sleeping figure, in stark contrast to the active engagement of the woman engrossed in her newspaper. I imagine Dewit carefully composing this scene, perhaps directing his subjects to capture this moment of quiet domesticity. There's a tension in the composition: the ornate wallpaper, the framed pictures, the patterned tablecloth. All these details create a sense of enclosure, almost like a stage set. What story are these women acting out, and what role does their interior space play in their lives? Dewit's photograph invites us to consider the ways in which we construct our own realities, both through our daily routines and through the stories we tell ourselves. It reminds me of how artists build upon each other’s work, responding to and reinterpreting familiar themes and motifs across time. The beauty of art is its ability to hold space for multiple readings.