Hedwig Stieglitz 1921 - 1922

Alfred Stieglitz made this photograph, Hedwig Stieglitz, with gelatin silver print, sometime in the early 20th century. Look at the way he plays with light and shadow – it's almost like he's painting with light. There's a softness to the image, a gentle way he captures his subject, his relative, Hedwig. I love how her shawl wraps around her, contrasting with the dark fabric of her head covering. You can almost feel the texture of the knitted wool. Her hand is gently placed against her face, and the soft light on her face highlights the wrinkles around her eyes, and there's a quiet strength in her gaze. The more you look, the more stories you see in the photograph. Stieglitz's portraits always remind me of August Sander's photographs, both capturing a depth of humanity in their subjects. Stieglitz reminds us that a picture is never just a record, but a conversation between the artist, the subject, and us.