Johannes Riemann 1920

This arresting photograph of Johannes Riemann was shot by Nicola Perscheid, though the date of the work is not known. I wonder what Johannes Riemann might have been thinking when he was making it. It must have been challenging to remain composed during the long exposure times required. Did he look into the lens, or did he look just beside it? His face is almost symmetrical, but there is a slyness in his stare. I imagine that he tried to resist looking directly at the camera, preferring instead to inhabit the background and be part of a bigger pictorial composition. He wanted to be seen as something other than himself. The composition is both formal and intimate. His coat feels like an armature. It’s a shell with very interesting fasteners, like stylized “C” shapes, running down the front. I guess clothes maketh the man, but also the photograph. There is a subtle, almost imperceptible shift between the light and the dark. The eye, of course, is attracted to the bright zones. We are invited to participate in the work by contemplating what is concealed and what is revealed.