Untitled (Crab man) c. 1910

This small, anonymous photograph presents a figure bent over on a beach, their head obscured. The figure adopts a posture that evokes the movements of a crab, bridging the human and animal worlds. The image resonates with the historical context of early photography, where the act of capturing a moment was a deliberate and somewhat awkward undertaking. Early photography often involved cumbersome equipment and long exposure times, imbuing it with a sense of performance. The image plays with the idea of identity, or perhaps the loss of it. The figure, dressed in formal attire, seems strangely out of place amidst the natural, fluid environment of the beach. This tension invites contemplation on the relationship between humanity and nature, and the roles we perform within those spaces. What do you feel when you view this image? Does it make you question your own performance of identity?