St. Cloud 1904

This photograph of St. Cloud was taken by Eugène Atget sometime in the late 19th or early 20th century. Atget wasn’t interested in making grand gestures with the camera, more interested in the process of documenting things plainly, a neutral record, but that becomes something else through time and use. What I find fascinating is the texture, how the light seems to almost sculpt the surfaces of the stones. You can feel the age in every crack and shadow, the way the light catches the edges of the steps. See how each layer has its own tone, a subtle gradient that leads your eye upward, step by step. The stains on the balustrade, the way the greenery is darker in tone, these are not accidental. It makes me think about those early photography pioneers like Daguerre and Niepce, who were also alchemists, figuring out how to capture light and shadow and freeze it in time. I’m reminded too of the way Bernd and Hilla Becher photographed industrial structures with a similar attitude, and of course, it's hard not to think of an artist like Ed Ruscha. Atget is so cool, because he’s so un-cool.