Untitled (young golfers sitting on stone wall) c. 1950

Curator: Here we have an untitled photograph by John Deusing, depicting young golfers sitting on a stone wall. Editor: The stark contrast immediately grabs me. It’s almost eerie, this negative image, yet strangely compelling. Curator: Indeed. Think about the social context here: golf, often associated with leisure and privilege. Deusing captures this group, perhaps on a break, their golf clubs almost like symbolic staffs of their status. The materiality of the stone wall, the clubs, the clothing—all speak to a specific kind of labor and class. Editor: I see the composition as mirroring a classical frieze. The horizontal line of the wall, the repetition of figures, create a fascinating rhythm. Curator: Precisely. And the way the negative image alters our perception of light and shadow emphasizes form. Editor: Looking at Deusing’s technique and its strange beauty, I can’t help feeling the photograph creates a mood of contemplation. Curator: It's fascinating to consider how the production of the image itself—the photographic process—adds layers of meaning. Editor: Absolutely, it allows us to see a slice of life rendered anew.