Watervliegtuig Dornier Do X c. 1925 - 1935

This silver gelatin print captures the Dornier Do X, a massive flying boat, maybe from the 1930s, and by an anonymous photographer. The tonality in this picture reminds me of the way that marks accumulate in the painting process. The water and the metal of the plane have a similar sheen. The way the image is rendered gives it a certain level of detail, yet the reflections on the water suggest a kind of flatness too. The dark parts of the plane are contrasted against the lighter sky. When I look at this, I think of Josef Albers and his use of color. Color and mark making are all about relationships and how we perceive them. In this picture, the relationships between light and dark are what make it so interesting. The anonymous photographer knew that too. It's like artmaking is a conversation across time.