House and Trees, Lake George 1931

Alfred Stieglitz made this photograph, "House and Trees, Lake George," sometime during his career. Look how he coaxes so many different textures out of a black and white palette. It’s like he’s painting with light itself. There’s a lot of tonal range, from the velvety darks of the distant hills to the soft greys of the clouds. The house, kind of nestled in the landscape, is rendered with such detail you can almost feel the weathered wood. And then there are the trees, a whole chorus of textures, some blurry and soft, others with sharp, distinct leaves. That lone, slender pole standing tall in the landscape, is a masterstroke of composition. It directs your eye, giving the image a kind of hopeful tension. Stieglitz reminds me a bit of Gerhard Richter, especially his landscapes. Both artists, though working in different mediums, share this incredible sensitivity to light and atmosphere, and a knack for finding the sublime in the everyday. And like all great art, this image is less about what you see, and more about how it makes you feel.