Chicago 1956

Editor: Here we have Harry Callahan's "Chicago," a photograph now at the Harvard Art Museums. The starkness of the bare tree against the white sky gives it such a melancholic feel. What symbols or meanings do you draw from it? Curator: The leafless tree, isolated, can evoke vulnerability or resilience. Its branches, reaching out, might represent connection, or perhaps a search for something. Consider how often trees appear in myths and folklore as symbols of life, death, and rebirth. Do you see any of those echoes here? Editor: I hadn't thought about rebirth, but now I see how the reaching branches could symbolize hope. Curator: Exactly. It's a reminder that even in apparent barrenness, potential remains. That’s the symbolic power of this image. Editor: I'll certainly look at trees differently from now on. Curator: And that's the beauty of art – it changes how we see the world.