Applicants waiting for jobs in front of FERA offices 1935

Ben captured this image of job seekers outside FERA offices with his camera. The way the figures are arranged, some standing, some seated, creates a rhythm of shapes that feels both casual and deliberate. Look at the texture here; the rough, almost grainy quality of the photograph itself. It speaks to a certain directness, a lack of pretense. You can almost feel the heat rising from the ground. I’m drawn to the man standing on the right in suspenders; he looks like he has just come to address the viewer. The clarity, the careful arrangement, suggests someone like Walker Evans. This photograph, in its stark simplicity, avoids easy answers. It reminds us that art is not just about what we see, but how we see and what we choose to notice. It’s an invitation to engage with the world, to question, and to find meaning in the most unexpected places.