Quai du Louvre c. 1930s

Édith-Claire Gérin made this gelatin silver print, Quai du Louvre, sometime in the 20th century. Look at how the dark stone steps in the foreground are sharply defined, contrasted against the cobblestones along the river. It’s almost like a stage set, right? The way the light bounces off the water is just gorgeous. Gérin captures a fleeting moment, a world in flux. The figure walking away, silhouetted, feels like a passing thought. There’s a certain anonymity, a quiet observation of everyday life that reminds me of Eugène Atget’s photographs of Paris. Those jagged shadows from the steps? They're echoed in the sparkling river, almost as if she's trying to tell us something about what is solid and what is liquid. It’s a conversation, not just about what's there, but about how we see it, and how we feel it. Like all good art, it asks more questions than it answers.