Robert Gould Shaw Memorial c. 1973 - 2008

This gelatin silver print of the Robert Gould Shaw Memorial was made by Richard Benson, who was born in 1943. The image is swathed in soft shades of gray, capturing not just the visible forms of the monument but also something of its emotional weight. You can see the texture, the rough-hewn stone, and the way the light catches on the surfaces. It's like Benson wasn't just photographing a statue but trying to feel what it feels like to be that statue. I imagine him studying the memorial, thinking about what it represents, thinking about the process of capturing that in a photograph. I think about the shadows, the way they add depth and complexity, suggesting layers of history and meaning. The photograph becomes a meditation on memory, history, and the weight of the past. Artists are always in conversation with each other, you know, responding to what came before, trying to make sense of the world in their own way.