Black and white photograph of a young boy sitting on the floor near a teacher who is sitting in a chair with her hand on the boys shoulder. "Meats and Fruits" words in the background.

While working in New York City for Look Magazine, Douglas Gilbert also worked on a number of personal projects around the city. His collection of photographs titled “The Darkside of Morning,” features teachers and students at The Manhattan School for seriously Disturbed Children from 1965 to 1967. The Manhattan School for seriously Disturbed Children was founded in 1962. The school would eventually become The Association for MetroArea Autistic Children, and it continued to operate in New York City until it closed in 2019. During its time in operation the school prided itself on providing individual education and care to autistic individuals ranging from 3 to 21 years old. Emphasizing their small class sizes and implication of “Applied Behavior Analysis” the school described its curriculum as having incorporated academics, enrichment activities and an emphasis in building social skills.