As people look into the lens, the viewer suddenly has the sense of being looked at, and looked at in this case with apparent delight. Forget that this is not so, that the people looking so directly at the camera are not seeing us; there is nevertheless the momentary sensation even today with people over ninety years ago.

The glance into the camera evokes one of the primal experiences of daily life- of look returned by look- through wich we signal mutual recognition and affirm the shared experience of the moment.


Living Hawthorn