Appalachia 1962 - 1971

Milton Rogovin made this gelatin silver print in the 20th century. Look at this woman sitting on her porch! She’s got a straw hat on, and she's got a little smirk and the pose of a thinker, and there’s so much texture in the photograph — the window, the plants, the wood slats of the house, and the woman’s striped top, all rendered in black and white. You know, when I look at her, I think about all the artists who photograph the working class. I think about Walker Evans, Dorothea Lange, and those who are interested in how people live. There’s something so still and intense about her gaze. It’s almost confrontational; she has her own story to tell. And it’s a reminder of how documentary photographs are a collaboration between the photographer and the subject. They’re both putting something out there and participating in a creative exchange. Rogovin has something to say, but so does she, in all her glory!