Races, Negroes: United States. Virginia. Hampton. Hampton Normal and Industrial School: Agencies Promoting Assimilation of the Negro. Training for Commercial and Industrial Employment. Hampton Normal and Agricultural Institute, Hampton, Va.: Type Setting. 1899 - 1900

Curator: This photograph by Frances Benjamin Johnston captures a type-setting class, likely from the late 19th or early 20th century. The composition is quite striking, isn't it? Editor: Yes, the rows of students at their stations create a rigid, almost oppressive grid. It evokes a sense of forced assimilation. Curator: The tonal range of the sepia is quite limited, which enhances the linear quality of the work, wouldn't you agree? Editor: Perhaps, but the image’s explicit title—detailing the “agencies promoting assimilation of the Negro”—renders purely formal concerns secondary. It’s a document of a fraught historical project. Curator: Of course, the historical context is undeniable. But I find the formal arrangement speaks to a universal order, a structural harmony that transcends its immediate subject. Editor: I see a visual representation of power structures and the targeted vocational training imposed on Black Americans at this time. Curator: Well, seeing both opens the photograph to interpretation. Editor: Absolutely, it provides layers of understanding.