Tobacco Picker, Rocky Mount, North Carolina 1943

Rosalie Gwathmey took this photograph, Tobacco Picker, Rocky Mount, North Carolina, sometime in the middle of the 20th century. Look how the walls of the house are adorned with garlands of drying tobacco leaves, almost like festive decorations. I can imagine Gwathmey standing there, framing the shot, considering the light, patiently waiting for the right moment. The tobacco picker stands in the doorway, his gaze averted, a quiet dignity in his posture. You can almost feel the weight of the day's labor in the way he stands. The composition is amazing: the contrast between the rough, weathered wood of the house and the softness of the figure, the play of light and shadow. It reminds me of other photographers of that time like Dorothea Lange, artists trying to capture something real about the lives of everyday people, and what a great and important thing to do with art: to notice and record. Gwathmey’s image captures a moment in time, a story, a life.