From the Viaduct, New York Possibly 1916 - 1917

This photograph, “From the Viaduct, New York,” by Paul Strand, presents us with a world seen through light and shadow, a dance that feels so immediate. Strand seems to be searching for a new way to see, reducing the city to a play of geometric forms. Look at the grays, how they almost flatten the space! The shadows of the viaduct create a web across the scene, and you can almost feel the gritty texture of the pavement. Then, there are those two figures, standing on the edge, like afterthoughts. It's like they're caught in the act of observing, just as we are. That circular form too, what is it? Is it a plate? A stain? Strand's work, like that of his contemporary Alfred Stieglitz, challenges us to find beauty in the everyday, to see the modern world with fresh eyes. And maybe that's what art is all about – finding new ways to see, and to feel, the world around us.