Ferris Wheel (Ruské kolo) 1933

Ladislav Foltýn made this photograph, Ferris Wheel, and he’s taken a worm’s eye view of this immense structure. The way he composes the shot, it’s all about angles, height, and the geometry of industry. Look at the texture in this photo. It’s not just the metal itself, but the way the light catches on all those rivets and the criss-crossing beams. There’s a real physicality to it, like you could reach out and feel the cold, hard steel. The monochrome palette emphasizes the starkness, but it also highlights the way the structure fills the sky, this man-made thing trying to touch the heavens. There’s something so human about this, about building something so big and complicated just for the thrill of it. It’s like what artists do, taking simple materials and processes and building something that shifts how we see the world. I’m reminded of the architectural photography of the Bechers. They found beauty and complexity in the ordinary, just like Foltýn does here. Art’s an ongoing conversation, right?