Untitled (little girl standing on grass, group of adults in background) c. 1940

Paul Gittings made this silver gelatin print of a little girl standing on grass with a group of adults in the background, we don't know when. The lack of strong tonal contrast in the image almost suggests a screen print. It's a process, like painting, where layers and decisions build the final piece. There's a ghostly quality to the adult figures looming behind her. The negative effect with the reversed darks and lights enhances the texture, especially in the field of grass. It's like a sea of tiny, individual marks, each one slightly different, creating a sense of movement. The girl is fixed in place, but the world around her feels alive. It reminds me of some of Alice Neel's portraits where the subjects seem both present and vulnerable. Art, like memory, is about embracing ambiguity, allowing multiple interpretations to coexist. It's a conversation that continues across time.