Untitled (portrait of three military men and family) c. 1940

Curator: This is John Deusing's "Untitled (portrait of three military men and family)" from the Harvard Art Museums collection. Editor: The photograph’s stark tonal range and centralized composition immediately evoke a sense of formality and perhaps, a touch of solemnity. Curator: Absolutely. The uniforms worn by these men represent service, duty, and perhaps sacrifice. The women too, poised gracefully, embody strength and resilience. It’s a tableau of wartime America. Editor: The symmetry and the placement of figures, almost like a classical frieze, create a balanced yet rigid structure. It speaks to the control inherent in formal portraiture. Curator: Indeed. Notice how the curtains frame the subjects, as if staging a momentous historical scene. It's a powerful configuration of archetypes. Editor: Yes, the lighting emphasizes the details of their uniforms, but it almost flattens their faces. We are seeing the uniform, not the person. Curator: An interesting tension! It highlights the individual's subsumption within a larger collective identity, a feeling so resonant in the war years. Editor: I see what you mean. It seems that the emphasis is not so much on the people depicted, but on the idea of service. Curator: That seems about right. Editor: Well, it definitely makes you think about the price of freedom and the weight of those expectations.