Untitled (portrait of little girl in armchair with book, feet up) c. 1955

This photograph by Paul Gittings captures a young girl in an armchair, engrossed in a book. The simple act of reading here echoes centuries of artistic renderings of knowledge, learning, and introspection. The girl's elevated feet, a seemingly trivial detail, resonate with the 'thinker' pose seen in statues of philosophers, signifying contemplation and intellectual pursuit. From ancient sculptures to Renaissance paintings, this gesture has been used to symbolize deep thought. Consider the cyclical return of such motifs, much like the ouroboros, endlessly devouring its tail, representing the eternal cycle of life, death, and rebirth. Similarly, poses and gestures reappear throughout art history, each time imbued with new meaning while retaining echoes of their past. They remind us that human expression and the quest for knowledge are timeless.