Week 31 - 2019
Frank Meadow Sutcliffe, Three happy boys, ca. 1889, Preus Museum Collection
Three happy boys
What’s the best thing about laughing? Perhaps it’s sharing it with someone else? What caused these three boys in the picture to laugh we can only guess at, but there's no doubt about it being something funny. The photo was taken at the end of the 1800s by the British photographer Frank Meadow Sutcliffe (1853-1941), known for his pictures of Whitby, a seaside town in England, and its surrounding areas. Here he made a living as a portrait photographer, but by photographing ordinary people (people he knew well), he managed to create an image; a record of life within a Victorian town and of the people living there. It’s an image from a particular era, but at the same time it is something equally universal as laughing children.
The 30th of July is marked as the International Friendship Day and as science have told us, friendships are already being established in early childhood. Friendship is not only important for close relations, but according to the UN friendships can build bridges between different civilizations and help bring about peace.
For some it’s hard finding a good friend. Some people have multiple friends, while others have only one. Some might even consider their dog as their bestfriend. Perhaps it's not so important having a bestfriend, but rather the opportunity to feel a friendly connection with multiple different people. Maybe the next person you meet today will become a new friend?