Untitled (two unidentified children, both wearing large lace collars) 1866 - 1900

Curator: Here we have an untitled photograph by W. G. Weatherup, depicting two unidentified children in large lace collars. It is located at the Harvard Art Museums. Editor: Oh, how poignant. The sepia tones lend a wistful quality, like a forgotten dream. And those collars—are they shields, or fragile halos? Curator: Lace in portraits often symbolized status and purity, but also the constraints placed upon children in that era. The collars, while beautiful, were also quite restrictive. Editor: I see it! There's a tension. A hint of rebellion flickers in their eyes, a silent agreement to someday shed those suffocating symbols. Curator: Indeed, the photographic image has become a vessel, imbued with all our layered understanding of their world. Editor: Makes you wonder about their stories, doesn’t it? I’m left feeling both melancholic and hopeful.