Untitled (young woman posed in chair wearing black suit and hat) 1940

Editor: Here we have an untitled photograph of a young woman, maybe from the mid-20th century, by Martin Schweig, held at the Harvard Art Museums. It's a photographic negative, which gives it this striking, almost ghostly appearance. I’m struck by the pose, like she’s playing a role, but the effect is unnerving. What do you make of it? Curator: It’s like peering into a memory, isn’t it? The negative reverses our expectations, almost like a dream, or a stage set—see the stylized foliage and those rather ominous candles. It feels staged, deliberately so. It makes me wonder, is she playing a character, or revealing one? Editor: That's a great question. The way you described it really flipped my perspective. Curator: Glad to share the view. It's those unexpected reversals that really make you look twice!