Ida and Georgia O'Keeffe 1924

Alfred Stieglitz captured this photograph of Ida and Georgia O'Keeffe using gelatin silver. The most striking symbol here is their gaze, turned upwards and outwards, suggesting aspiration, hope, and a reach toward the heavens, a motif that has roots stretching back to antiquity. Consider ancient Greek sculptures of philosophers or deities, often depicted with a similar upward gaze. It speaks to a desire for enlightenment, a yearning for something beyond the material world. It has appeared again and again in art history, re-emerging in Renaissance paintings, imbuing figures with an ethereal, spiritual quality. But here, this motif is grounded, made modern by Stieglitz's lens. The directness of the gaze, devoid of coyness, is a powerful force engaging viewers on a subconscious level. This portrait becomes a mirror reflecting our own subconscious longings, the collective human desire to transcend our immediate reality.