Untitled 1992

This untitled photograph was taken by Thomas Roma sometime during his career, using, I imagine, a camera with a very sharp lens. The image is captured in high contrast black and white which gives it a sense of timelessness. The surface of the print is smooth, almost glassy, which adds to the photograph’s documentary feel, making you think it could be evidence of something. I’m drawn to the hands reaching out in the center of the image. Roma has captured a fleeting moment. Is it a gesture of greeting, blessing, or something else? The ambiguity is delicious. It makes you think about all the unseen relationships playing out in the image, all the lives that connect together in that room. Like Garry Winogrand, Roma has an eye for the poetry of the everyday. Both artists allow us to find meaning and beauty in the mundane, reminding us of art’s capacity for seeing and feeling.