Untitled (child trying on clothes in store) c. 1950

Curator: This small, square photograph from the Harvard Art Museums is by Jack Gould and is titled "Untitled (child trying on clothes in store)." Editor: The image feels quite candid, almost intrusive, with a little girl struggling with her clothes in what looks like a department store. The high contrast creates a somewhat unsettling mood. Curator: It's interesting to consider the labor involved, both for the child and the saleswoman assisting her. Shopping was, and still is, work. The act of trying on clothes, finding the right fit, can be a complex social ritual. Editor: Absolutely. And think about the materials involved, the fabric of the clothes themselves, the architecture of the store designed for consumption. The image captures a moment of economic exchange, a transaction. Curator: I agree. Also, there is tension between innocence and this commercial setting. The child is vulnerable, but the image circulates now as an object of artistic and historical significance. Editor: True. Thinking about its journey from shop floor to museum wall really puts the emphasis on the layers of production and our continued act of consumption. Curator: This photograph provides a window into those intersections of labor, consumption, and childhood, if you will. Editor: Definitely, it prompts us to consider the everyday spaces where we build both our identities and our economies.