Inside a Psychiatric Hospital, 1938

"Even today, three-quarters of a century after they were shot, Alfred Eisenstaedt’s photographs from the grounds of Pilgrim State Hospital on Long Island are remarkable for the way they blend clear-eyed reporting with a genuine sense of compassion. But what is perhaps most unsettling about the images is how terribly familiar they look.

The treatment of mental illness — in all its confounding varieties and degrees — has come a long, long way since the 1930s, and in most countries is now immeasurably more humane, comprehensive and discerning than the brutal approaches of even a century ago. Advancements in psychiatric medications alone have helped countless people lead fuller lives than they might have without drugs. And yet … the grim, desolate tone of the pictures in this gallery will feel eerily contemporary to anyone familiar with psych wards in large hospitals today."
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