Light on Lead Street 1968

This black and white photograph, "Light on Lead Street" by Eve Sonneman, captures a moment frozen in time. It's got this triptych feel, doesn't it? It's like, bam, here's a woman, then bam, a dog, and bam, a tree – each framed, yet connected by the play of light and shadow. I can almost feel the cool evening air, hear the rustle of leaves. Sonneman’s got this eye for the mundane turned magical. What was she thinking as she snapped the shot? Did she see a story unfolding, a narrative in the shadows? I look at the way the light rakes across the scene, creating these sharp, dramatic contrasts, like the chiaroscuro in a Baroque painting. It feels like an ongoing conversation between painting and photography. Sonneman seems to ask questions, and offers no answers. To me, photography is so much about the process. It's like a painter's gesture, the way she frames and captures is her signature mark.