Jean Toomer 1925

Alfred Stieglitz made this photograph of Jean Toomer at an unknown date using gelatin silver print. Look how Stieglitz coaxes the light! The way he plays with grey tones and soft focus brings out a kind of quiet intensity. There’s a softness to the image, but it’s also sharp, especially around Toomer’s eyes. The texture is incredible. You can almost feel the wool of his coat, the smoothness of his skin. The way the light catches on his collar, it's so tactile. And the expression on Toomer’s face, that slight smirk, it gives him a sense of mystery. It’s not just a portrait, it’s a study of character, captured in a moment. Stieglitz’s work reminds me a bit of Gerhard Richter, actually, especially his blurred portraits. Both artists share this interest in exploring the boundaries between representation and abstraction. Like Richter, Stieglitz seems to suggest that art doesn't have to be so serious, and that it can play with ambiguity.