Hong Kong 1985

This is Harry Callahan's "Hong Kong," and it's a photograph, so it was made with a camera and film. I see a jumble, an overlap, a superimposition. I can imagine Callahan wandering the crowded streets, camera in hand, trying to make sense of the chaos and density, maybe feeling a little lost, or overwhelmed. He’s layered images to capture the energy of the city, like when you make a painting by collaging fragments together. The signs, cars, and people become abstract shapes and patterns, and the layering creates a sense of depth and movement. The way he uses the camera to pile up visual information reminds me of the dense surfaces of a Gerhard Richter painting, or the way a Robert Rauschenberg combine merges painting and sculpture. Artists always respond to the world around them, and to each other. They are forever in conversation. Callahan's photograph invites us to see the world in new ways, not as a fixed and stable reality, but as a fluid and ever-changing experience.