Haute Couture Soirée 1935

This gelatin silver print, “Haute Couture Soirée,” was captured by Brassai sometime in the 20th century. Just look at the gesture of those bold ruffles and the looping hat! I imagine Brassai, lurking in the corner, a fly on the wall. He's probably thinking about capturing the essence of Parisian nightlife. How does he do it? The composition isn’t just about what's there, but what’s implied. He uses light and shadow to suggest mood and atmosphere. It’s about capturing a feeling, an essence, rather than a literal representation. Think about the tactility of the photographic paper, its texture, its sheen... Does it evoke a certain feeling? And how does that interplay with the subject matter? Brassai would have been very familiar with the work of painters and sculptors in Paris and surely they rubbed off on each other. This photograph is part of a rich conversation of ideas that spans across different artistic forms and generations.