Broadway and Broome Street, Manhattan 1935

This is Berenice Abbott's photograph of Broadway and Broome Street, Manhattan. It was created sometime in the 20th century, and printed on photographic paper. Look how the buildings are packed together, rising high, almost squeezing the sky. I can just imagine Abbott, setting up her camera, trying to capture the enormity of the city. What was it like to be her, a woman in a man’s world, pointing her lens at the world? The perspective of the shot is so interesting. It feels tilted, vertiginous even, like you could fall right into the street. It's kind of amazing how she captured the city's energy, its grit. It makes me want to grab my own camera and wander the streets, looking for those hidden angles, the unexpected compositions that reveal the city's hidden soul.