Description

A revolver, a pickaxe, dice, a bottle of rum, two glasses—one knocked over—suggest a tragic conflict, although we will never know. The newspaper is turned to the stock page, reminding us that 1930 was the beginning of the Great Depression. The stone sink surrounded by the dishes and serving bowls suggests the clean up from a hearty meal in rustic quarters, while the dirty sink with beakers and wash basin calls to mind the tools of the darkroom. Could the latter image be a self-portrait in the form of a still life? Did the photographer encounter this still life, or did he stage it?