Georgia Engelhard 1922

This is Alfred Stieglitz’s "Georgia Engelhard," and looking at this platinum print, I'm struck by the gentle gradations of tone, how Stieglitz coaxes such a range from a limited palette. The surface has a kind of velvety touch; it’s almost like you could reach out and feel the cool water on your fingertips. The way the light catches on the ripples around her legs, creating these delicate, shimmering patterns, feels so intimate. Her body is soft, vulnerable, and real, standing in the shallow water. The detail, the fuzziness, it's like a memory trying to come into focus. Stieglitz, like his contemporary Edward Steichen, was interested in the way photography could be art, like painting. Maybe the Symbolist painters were on his mind. It’s all about the suggestion, the feeling, and the way art opens up possibilities rather than closing them down.