Coltrane at the Gate 1961

Editor: Okay, so we’re looking at “Coltrane at the Gate,” a black and white photograph by Adger Cowans, from 1961. It’s incredibly evocative – almost like trying to capture sound itself, to visualise this moment in time, using gesture. What are your thoughts? Curator: It *is* sonic, isn't it? I feel like Cowans wasn't just photographing John Coltrane, but the very *essence* of his music, what he represented for many at the time, what freedom of expression *felt* like in that era. A musician trying to transcend known space and time, as the photograph blurs past those very things. Doesn’t the image have that ‘seeking something’ sort of vibe? Almost reverential? Editor: I totally see that now. I initially thought it was just an interesting experiment with blur, a formal exercise, but seeing it as this spiritual pursuit makes way more sense. Was Cowans connected to the music scene then? Curator: Absolutely! Think about the abstract expressionist movement which had grown by then—Cowans was a contemporary. This feels to me like it fits that mindset too. A response of abstract expression to a photograph! But what about the light itself, though? What feelings come up when you see how Cowans manipulated it to become something ethereal, so pure in tone? Editor: It does make Coltrane almost ghost-like, or maybe more like a vessel? And I can almost feel the warmth radiating. I like that reading of transcendence, though; that is much more intriguing. Curator: I do too, especially when considering he was trying to, both then and still does today. Art’s beautiful for this kind of open-ended expression, yeah? Editor: Definitely! I’m starting to see this work as less of a portrait and more of a visual poem. Thanks for that perspective!