Marsden Hartley 1916

This is a photograph of Marsden Hartley by Alfred Stieglitz. It’s a small gelatin silver print, giving it a kind of intimate, almost hushed quality. Stieglitz was all about process, he really wanted to show photography as an art form, not just a way to record things. Look at the way the light catches Hartley’s face. It's stark, almost sculptural. You can see every line, every shadow. His eyes are intense, peering out from under that dark hat. The scarf is loosely knotted, there’s a casualness that contrasts with the formality of the portrait. It’s a really physical image. It reminds me a bit of some of those old black and white film stills. Stieglitz, like those directors, knew how to use light and shadow to create drama. Both Stieglitz and Hartley had strong personalities, so I imagine their interaction was filled with passionate debate. Maybe that intensity is what we see reflected in this image. Art, after all, is just one big conversation.