Portret van Charles Darwin before 1901

This is Julia Margaret Cameron's photograph of Charles Darwin. It's a simple photograph, yet the tonal range achieves a sort of painterly effect. Cameron seems less interested in a precise likeness and more in conveying something of Darwin's essence, through light and shadow. Look at the way the light falls across Darwin’s face, accentuating the deep wrinkles and the set of his jaw. The darks and lights create a sort of topography of knowledge and experience. Then there’s that magnificent beard. It's almost cloud-like, blurring the edge of his body into the background. It’s such a beautifully soft area in contrast to the sharp angle of his suit. The inscription at the bottom gives the image intimacy. Cameron wasn't striving for perfect clarity, but for emotional resonance. Maybe we can think about someone like Gerhard Richter, in the way that he obscures parts of the painting in a blur, or maybe even the impressionists, who saw that accuracy wasn't the only measure of truth.