Photograph 1910

Editor: This is "Photograph" by Thomas Eakins, taken around 1910, a gelatin-silver print. There’s a stillness to it. Two women are depicted in a natural setting, seemingly paused in conversation or perhaps lost in their own thoughts. What strikes you about this piece? Curator: It’s interesting to consider this photograph within the context of pictorialism and realism, two movements Eakins navigated. The image appears candid, almost documentary in its realism, but also consider how it may represent evolving societal roles for women at the turn of the century. How do their poses and attire speak to their place in society? Editor: That's a great point. One woman seems almost hidden in shadow, while the other, in her striped skirt, seems bolder. Is Eakins making a commentary? Curator: Perhaps. Consider the implications of this supposed “candidness” in an era of posed portraiture. To me, the setting also matters: they are by a tree that offers both protection and a stage. Could the tree symbolize nature as a space for female bonding and liberation from constraints? How does the artist portray power dynamics here? Editor: I hadn't thought about the tree as a space itself! It makes me think of women claiming spaces that were historically off-limits. Curator: Exactly! Thinking about visual language, what could we say about photography becoming a medium of empowerment, by subverting visual assumptions about the female gaze and authorship in the arts? Editor: That's fascinating. I'm going to look at Eakins' work through that lens now. It has brought into focus so much I didn't realize was there! Curator: Exactly the aim! It's vital we constantly engage in art not as static objects, but through an exploration of our shared histories and shifting ideologies.