Subway Portrait 1938 - 1941

Walker Evans made this photograph, "Subway Portrait," with a hidden camera on the New York City subway. It's a small picture, a little sepia-toned jewel. Look at the way he captures the texture of the women’s clothing. The fur on the older woman’s coat looks almost sculptural, while the younger woman’s wool coat has a softer, worn quality. Evans is brilliant at distilling information; he isn’t overly concerned with the detail or the perfection of his compositions. What grabs me is the contrast between the women's expressions. The younger woman gazes off with a melancholy air, while the older woman stares straight ahead, her face a mask of stoicism. The lighting is soft, almost painterly, reminiscent of some of the great portraitists like Rembrandt, whose work used light and shadow to reveal the inner character of his subjects. It’s hard not to see these women as archetypes, caught in a moment of urban life.