Equivalent O3 1929

Here is a black and white photograph by Alfred Stieglitz. When I look at this print I imagine Stieglitz out there squinting at the sky, framing the clouds with his camera, trying to capture something fleeting. In this dynamic composition, dense clusters of dark clouds billow across the frame, punctuated by a small burst of light. He called this series Equivalents, and they’re like abstract paintings made with light and shadow. I can imagine him thinking about what it’s like to make paintings by people like Marsden Hartley and Georgia O’Keefe. This image is about mood and feeling. When you look at this artwork, you can almost feel the cool air and the ephemeral qualities of light. Just like paint, photography can be used to express what the artist is feeling, and in turn, what we feel too. It’s a conversation.