Georgia O'Keeffe—Legs 1919

Editor: This is Alfred Stieglitz's photograph "Legs" from 1919. It's striking, and I’m intrigued by its somewhat abstracted presentation of the female form. How do you interpret this work, focusing as it does on a seemingly intimate and unusual part of the body? Curator: Stieglitz offers us a language beyond mere flesh. What we perceive are archetypes rendered through light and shadow. The legs themselves symbolize a foundation, a connection to the earth and a point of origination. Do you see a similarity between these forms and the symbolic language often assigned to, say, the Earth Mother goddesses? Editor: I see the connection, but I'm also a little uncomfortable. Is it fair to impose such symbolic weight on a photograph that, on its surface, just shows a nude body? Curator: Perhaps "imposing" is not quite right. Rather, the image *invites* interpretation based on centuries of cultural memory. Think about the deliberate positioning, the lighting that emphasizes certain curves while obscuring others, how the dark shadows are essential to what is seen. How much does that contribute? Stieglitz is actively shaping a narrative through this photographic language. He asks us to confront what femininity represents and how its symbolism impacts us individually. Editor: So you’re saying the image is more about cultural memory and how we perceive femininity, and less about the individual depicted? Curator: Precisely. Stieglitz provides us with symbols; it's the viewer that then actively breathes life into that symbolism. Editor: This gives me a totally different perspective than my initial one, it is an amazing idea to look at symbols and how they are related to our cultural past and feelings. Thank you. Curator: The power of images truly resides in this continuous dialogue between what they show and how we see them.