Gerald Waston, "Pro," Angola, Louisiana 10 - 1999

This is a photograph of Gerald Watson, titled "Pro," taken by Deborah Luster in Angola, Louisiana. It’s a small plate, just 12.7 × 10.2 cm, which gives it an intimate feel, like a secret. The warm sepia tones pull you in, don’t they? It’s as if the photo itself is whispering stories. There’s this incredible balance between the stark black backdrop and the soft light that caresses Gerald’s face and clothes. I’m thinking about Luster, and how it must have felt to work with these old processes. The care, and the attention. There is something about the gesture of his hands resting on his thighs, and how this can communicate so much about the sitter. The pose is confident, almost confrontational, but then softened by the vulnerability in his eyes. It reminds me a bit of the portraits of Alice Neel, who also had this way of capturing the humanity of her subjects. It is a long and rich conversation that artists continue to have.