Untitled (potrait of bride on patio in front of wooded area, man fixing train) 1954

This photograph of a bride was taken by Paul Gittings. It's eerie, like a ghost. Gittings had a particular vision, didn’t he? You can see the composition is so staged, so unreal. The bride stands frozen in the doorway. There is a strange darkness to the image, but it feels like he was trying to capture something more than just a portrait. It's as if he's revealing the artifice of these constructed roles of marriage. It’s interesting to think about the role of photography at this moment. It was always about more than capturing reality. I'm sure Gittings was in conversation with other photographers of the time. I wonder how he's been received? Ultimately, this photograph is a reminder that art is always a conversation, that each artist builds on the work of those who came before, and that the meaning of a work can change as we continue to look at it.