Bombay, 2008, on Juhu Beach Possibly 2008 - 2014

Curator: Leo Rubinfien's "Bombay, 2008, on Juhu Beach" is a starkly beautiful photograph. Editor: Beautiful, yes, but mostly I'm struck by how it perfectly captures that feeling of being lost in a crowd, anonymous yet intensely present. Curator: It's a fantastic example of street photography. Rubinfien captured this in perhaps sometime between 2008 and 2014, in a place where private lives play out in a very public manner. There is that intimate detail amidst a busy scene that provides us an immediacy. It's all captured in monochrome, which reduces distraction and adds layers of seriousness to it. Editor: Absolutely. The decision to work in black and white focuses us on the raw textures: the cotton of their clothing, the age in the faces. I am wondering what sort of film and printing processes Rubinfien might have used to achieve this degree of contrast, but the depth of field seems to create flatness within this crowd of bodies. This technique somehow democratizes the subjects. We don’t see some privileged focal point. Curator: It is amazing how those tiny, human details elevate it. And the man’s face— the way he squints into the distance with a mixture of concern and curiosity… he almost becomes a symbol for all of us trying to make sense of the world. What do you feel is the significance of capturing a moment from a seemingly banal environment? Editor: For me, it throws light on the sheer density of urban life in Bombay. These ordinary materials of clothing and ordinary eyeglasses worn by this population become almost monumental. Curator: The ordinary becomes extraordinary. To make a social commentary or provide a moment for personal meditation? The beauty lies within these small human experiences which may encourage self-reflection from viewers as well. Editor: Right, Rubinfien prompts us to observe, think about what this work represents and see beauty differently through materials and experiences, perhaps.