Untitled 1992

Editor: Here we have a gelatin silver print, an Untitled work by Thomas Roma from 1992. My first reaction? It’s… intense. A real visceral scene. The hands gripping this person! It feels like some kind of ritual or intervention. What do you see in this photograph? Curator: Ah, yes, Roma has a knack for capturing these incredibly charged moments. To me, it's about faith, community, and perhaps the raw physicality of spiritual experience. There’s an energy here, wouldn’t you agree? Like a transfer happening. Think of how religions often employ touch – blessings, laying on of hands... Roma brings this right to the surface, doesn’t he? I’m also drawn to the contrast between the rough, almost brutal grasp and the seeming vulnerability of the subject. Do you find that contrast disturbing, or perhaps… poignant? Editor: A bit of both, I think! The starkness of the black and white enhances that, almost removing any possibility of sentimentality. It definitely challenges the viewer to confront something… uncomfortable? Curator: Exactly! And that's where Roma excels. He isn’t offering us easy answers or pretty pictures. He's showing us life – messy, complex, and sometimes difficult to look at. It begs the question: is it a healing touch, a forceful grip or some amalgamation of the two? Think about it! Editor: I will! It makes me appreciate how a seemingly simple image can be so loaded with ambiguity and emotion. It definitely sticks with you. Curator: Indeed! It's a reminder that art, at its best, isn't just about what we see, but how it makes us *feel*. Thanks, that was invigorating!