Long Island Landscape (bay view with telephone lines) 1979

Editor: This is Lawrence McFarland's "Long Island Landscape (bay view with telephone lines)," a photograph from an unknown date. It's grayscale and feels quite stark. What do you see in the composition that strikes you? Curator: The composition hinges on a dialectic between the natural and the constructed. Note how the rigid verticals of the telephone poles are juxtaposed against the horizontal expanse of the bay. This creates a visual tension. Editor: So, the lines of the telephone poles are almost fighting the scene's natural flow? Curator: Precisely. Further, observe the tonal range. The gradations of gray are tightly controlled, which accentuates the formal structure. Do you perceive a resolution in this tension? Editor: I think so. The water and sky echo each other, balancing the severity of the man-made elements. I never would have considered that. Curator: Indeed, a close examination reveals the artist's hand in constructing a dialogue between these elements.