Eleanor, Chicago c. 1954

Harry Callahan made this black and white photograph, titled Eleanor, Chicago, at some unknown date. I’m intrigued by how Callahan uses light and shadow. It’s not just about capturing what’s there, but about creating a mood, an emotion. The darkness that surrounds the room, it almost feels like a protective embrace. The room in the background, with its window and bed, is this beacon of light, but it’s so far away. It’s about seeing and not seeing, about what’s revealed and what’s concealed. The print is relatively small, and the tones are very smooth. It almost feels like a memory, something that’s both there and not there. The dark tones of the photographic paper create a certain weight, and the delicate balance of light makes it feel timeless. The contrast between the darkness and the light in the back room really pulls me in. It makes me think about light and how we experience it, how it shapes our perceptions.