Rozella Marie Blackwell 1985

Joan Cassis made this photograph of Rozella Marie Blackwell, but its date is unknown. When I look at this portrait, I immediately think about the weight of the moment the photographer and the subject shared. The grey tones and the pose of the subject create a mood, almost like a slow-motion dance of gravity and light. It's so much more than just a picture; it feels like a shared, suspended moment, a connection between two people. The flatness of the background contrasts with the curves of her dress, which in turn contrasts with her face. I can only imagine what it might have been like to make this photograph, the subtle adjustments, the breath held, the click of the shutter. It's as if the camera becomes a brush, and the photographer, like a painter, captures not just an image but a trace of an interaction, an echo of a feeling. Artists are always in conversation, aren't they, always building on each other's work, and I think of the way the work of Diane Arbus also holds these moments of uncertainty and ambiguity with such bravery.