Untitled (woman seated in chair with dolls by Christmas tree) c. 1940

Curator: John Deusing's small, untitled photograph presents a woman seated, cradling dolls before a Christmas tree. The image radiates a ghostly, almost ethereal quality. Editor: It's disquieting, isn't it? That high-contrast inversion gives everything a spectral feel, like a forgotten memory surfacing. Curator: Precisely. The dolls themselves contribute to this feeling. Are they stand-ins for children, or perhaps for unrealized aspirations? There’s a palpable tension between domesticity and something… else. Editor: I see a commentary on the roles imposed on women, perhaps. The dolls as symbols of expected motherhood, the Christmas tree as a marker of idealized family life, all viewed through a lens of unsettling artificiality. Curator: I agree, there's certainly something artificial about it. The image leaves me unsettled but intrigued. Editor: Yes, it's a potent reminder that the personal is always political, even in the quietest domestic scenes.