Equivalent K1 1929

Alfred Stieglitz, at some point in his life, pointed his camera up at the sky and made this photograph of clouds. Have you ever looked up at the sky and seen pictures in the clouds? Stieglitz did. He titled this series "Equivalents," meaning that the photos were equivalent to his feelings. Think about that; it's like saying he painted them, but with light. It makes me think about how photography can be like painting. I can imagine him looking up, framing the shot, waiting for the right moment. Maybe he was thinking about his own life while he was doing it? You know? The dark area on the left could be looming anxieties, with light as a kind of freedom. Painters have always looked at the world around them. Stieglitz looked up. It’s all about an exchange of ideas across time. He made the world see through his eyes, and now we can see through his. That's what it’s all about: multiple interpretations, and feelings, too.