Untitled [Two children in masks and urinal]

Ralph Eugene Meatyard is best known for constructing surreal and often unsettling photographs that feature masked characters—including family members like his children pictured here—enacting ambiguous narratives. He would pick the environment first, assess the light, compose a scene, and then populate it with people, dictating where and how they should stand.

Meatyard often used props in his photographs, and masks were among his favorites, as he felt that they erased the differences between people. Elaborating on this idea, Meatyard once explained that “the idea of a person, a photograph, say, of a young girl with a title ‘Rose Taylor’ or the title ‘Rose’ or no title at all becomes an entirely different thing… ‘Rose Taylor’ is a specific person, whether you know her nor not. ‘Rose’ is more generalized and could be one of many Roses—many people. No title, it could be anybody.” Similarly, a mask “serves as nonpersonalizing a person,” transforming people into characters and heightening the sense of ghoulish dreaminess in his photographs.