Untitled (trainer with monkey sitting next to tricycle) c. 1950

Curator: Here we have an intriguing photograph from the Harvard Art Museums. It's an untitled work by Jack Gould, featuring a trainer with a monkey sitting next to a tricycle. Editor: My first thought? Slightly unsettling, like a dream you can’t quite place. Curator: It speaks to a very specific moment in the history of entertainment, doesn't it? Consider the use of animals in circuses and performances. It highlights their role, but also, the ethics involved. Editor: Right. And there's a tension here. The bright reversal almost makes it look like a negative, which gives it this strange, haunting quality. Makes you wonder about the life of that monkey. Curator: It really makes you think about how images shape our perception of these animals and their place in society. Editor: Exactly, images like this imprint ideas. I’m just left thinking about the strange circus of life and how we all play our part.