St. Gabriel, Louisiana 2 - 2001

Deborah Luster made this portrait in an unknown year, using a photographic process on a metal plate. Look closely at the way the light seems to be struggling to escape from the darkness! I'm struck by the texture of the surface, it feels almost like looking at a very old painting. The way the light hits the woman's face and the pearls around her neck is really something. It gives her a sort of quiet dignity. See how the imperfections and scratches on the plate aren't hidden? I love that! It’s like the process is part of the story, not something to be ashamed of. The dark area above her head feels like a kind of inky void, which makes me think about photography as a dance between light and darkness, life and death. It's reminiscent of the portrait work of someone like Dawoud Bey, in its quiet power and sensitivity. Art is always a conversation, isn’t it? We're all just riffing off each other, trying to make sense of this crazy world.