Untitled (men arranging manequins in shop window) c. 1950

Curator: Immediately I’m struck by how ghostly everything seems, like figures caught between worlds. Editor: This is Jack Gould’s untitled image, from the collection of the Harvard Art Museums. What we see here is a group of men arranging mannequins in a shop window, rendered in a monochrome palette. Curator: The mannequins themselves take on an almost unsettling presence amidst the living. Do you see any symbolism in that? Editor: Well, mannequins often reflect societal ideals, a cultural aspiration towards beauty or success. Here, their interaction with the figures might suggest a commentary on the artificiality of these ideals, or perhaps the blurred line between reality and representation. Curator: It certainly gives you pause, doesn’t it? A quiet observation that lingers with you. Editor: It does. And it makes you wonder what was going through the artist's mind at that particular moment.