St. Gabriel, Louisiana 27 - 2000

Deborah Luster made this haunting photograph, St. Gabriel, Louisiana, using the 19th-century tintype process. It's incredible to think about the steps involved, the darkroom alchemy, to get this image to emerge. Look at her face. It's just there, staring at you with an unflinching gaze. You can see so many stories in it. The way the light catches the skeleton on the front of her shirt. It almost seems like a protective layer, or a comment on mortality - like she is saying that she is here, alive. She's working in a tradition of photographers like Diane Arbus, Nan Goldin, and Sally Mann, but completely makes it her own, pushing photography’s boundaries. It's a reminder that art can be so much more than just what we see on the surface. It's a portal to new ways of thinking and feeling. And maybe even a little bit of magic.