New York 170 1982

Aaron Siskind made this gelatin silver print, New York 170, and well, it’s not dated, but let’s just say it captures a moment. The high contrast in this image, it's like a stark, graphic punch. You see how the light bleeds and blooms around the edges of the graffiti? That's the silver reacting, shifting its tone, it’s alive somehow. It’s more than just a surface, it’s a collaboration between the artist and the chemistry. The texture is what gets me; the way the grain of the silver meets the rough scrawl on that wall, that little drip. It’s like the city is crying out its secrets. Siskind's work reminds me of Cy Twombly, in a way. That same love for the accidental, the poetic mark, the beauty in what others might see as decay. This piece is not just about what it depicts, it's about seeing, feeling, and finding the unexpected poetry in the everyday.