Sugar (Lower West Side series) 1992

Milton Rogovin made this photograph, part of his Lower West Side series, with his camera, sometime in the last century. The image is stark, gray, and real, and yet it feels so human, full of all the little things that make a person themselves. I love how the light catches the details, like the pattern on her shirt, a patchwork of polka dots and florals. The way she leans against the windowsill, cigarette in hand, feels so casual, but there’s also a quiet strength about her. Look at the texture of the wall, the worn floor, and the soft light filtering through the curtains. Rogovin's picture reminds me of Dorothea Lange, who found poetry in the dustbowl. It’s like they both knew how to turn the ordinary into something extraordinary. It's about life, you know? The real stuff, not the polished version.