Karl-Heinz Arndtheim, de tweede echtgenoot van Isabel Wachenheimer, in Israël tussen 1949 en 1955 1949 - 1955

This photograph shows Karl-Heinz Arndtheim, the second husband of Isabel Wachenheimer, and was taken in Israel sometime between 1949 and 1955. What strikes me is the quality of light and shadow, how the photographer has worked with the limited tonal range to model the sitter’s face and clothing. There's such tenderness in those tones. The background is out of focus so there are no distractions, it's all about him! You wonder what this person was thinking and feeling at this time. Was he happy? Anxious? He looks confident. The edges of the card are wavy and this creates a sense of the past, of an era that's gone. Even though photography is so immediate, so of the moment, time adds another layer of feeling. Painters are always looking at photographs to find new ideas, new ways of seeing and representing the world and each other. We are all in conversation, across time.