Georgia O'Keeffe—Hands c. 1919

Alfred Stieglitz made this photograph of Georgia O’Keeffe’s hands. I see two hands reaching in from either side of the frame, framing two dark round shapes—breasts maybe? I think of the way the photographer might have been directing his model, shifting the composition, considering the angle and the light. The artist is using O’Keeffe’s hands as framing devices, carefully arranged within the pictorial space to emphasize certain forms. It feels very constructed, self-conscious even. That extended index finger on the top hand—it’s like he’s pushing us, pointing to something. It's a photograph, but he composes the image in much the same way a painter would. It makes me think about the relationship between Stieglitz and O’Keefe, how they created a unique visual language together. As artists, they were in constant dialogue, responding to each other’s work. The image is so intimate, the hands are so present. It's beautiful and strange.