From the Viaduct, New York Possibly 1916 - 1917

Paul Strand made this photograph, “From the Viaduct, New York,” using light, shadow, and a camera, of course. But what makes it sing? I'm thinking about that moment when he was up there, composing this shot. The shadows of the bridge are like the bones of the city, crisscrossing and creating these mad angles. He’s looking down, and the world becomes flattened, almost abstract. The two figures on the right—are they meeting, parting, or just killing time? I wonder how long he waited for them to be in the right spot? It's a bit voyeuristic, and I can't help but feel like I'm spying on a secret rendezvous. Strand really nailed how light can transform the mundane into something poetic. It reminds me of other photographers like Atget, who found beauty in the everyday. There's this sense of discovery, like we’re all just trying to find new ways to see the same old world.