Untitled (photograph of woman in profile with pale skin and white hair) c. 1970

Here, at Harvard Art Museums, we have an untitled photograph by Paul Gittings of a woman in profile, printed in subdued sepia tones. What I find arresting is how the subject is both present and absent, a figure made ghostlike through the high-key lighting and soft focus. I can just imagine Gittings fussing over the studio lights, aiming for that sweet spot where the woman’s pale skin and white hair almost blend into the background. The high contrast makes the image teeter between clarity and complete obliteration. It’s like he’s trying to capture not just her likeness, but some fleeting essence. That slight upward tilt of her chin, those eyes gazing at something just beyond our view – they communicate a longing, an aspiration, which is so interesting in portraiture. Looking at this artwork makes me think about the work of other photographers like Julia Margaret Cameron, or even painters like John Singer Sargent, who sought to evoke their sitter’s inner life through posture and light. Artists are always reaching back, aren't they? Always in conversation with each other.