Puerto Rican Woman with a Beauty Mark 1969

Diane Arbus made this gelatin silver print called, "Puerto Rican Woman with a Beauty Mark" and it really gets under your skin, doesn't it? I’m intrigued by the stark contrast, the way the light catches the woman’s face, almost like a theatrical spotlight. It's an unflinching gaze. The graininess of the print, the deep blacks and bright whites, it all feels so immediate, so present. Look at the beauty mark itself, a tiny dark spot against the skin. It’s a detail that Arbus hones in on. And the eyes, they're so intense, so direct. It's like she's daring us to look away, but we can't. It reminds me a little of Lisette Model, another photographer who wasn't afraid to look at the world head-on, no holds barred. Art, like life, is messy, complicated, and full of surprises.