The Graduating Class 1913

"The Graduating Class" was shot in 1913 by Frank Eugene. Look at the tonal range here, from nearly black to near white, and the way he uses it to create mood. This work is a photograph, but it looks more like an impressionistic painting to me because of the way the light is handled. It is almost like the edges of the figures are fading into the background. I keep coming back to the way the women are posed; they are sort of slumped and leaning, looking like they have just completed some monumental task. It speaks to the relationships between them, the sort of bonds that are formed through shared experience. I think that there is something in the photographic work of someone like Julia Margaret Cameron that feels related here. I like to think of artists being in conversation across time. The way they play with light and soften their focus makes both works feel timeless. I am left wondering what the story behind it all is.