Versailles, Vase 1905

Eugène Atget made this photograph of a vase in Versailles using the early-photography process of albumen printing. The image is mostly in shades of brown and beige. The vase itself looks massive, like it’s made of stone and covered in baroque carvings. There’s something about the way Atget captured the texture that makes you want to run your hands over it, feel the cool stone, and trace the lines of the grapes and ribbons. It's like Atget wants us to really *see* this vase, not just glance at it. I’m particularly drawn to the faces on the vase. They're like little masks, frozen in a perpetual grimace. They remind me a bit of some of the sculptures you see in Roman gardens, or even the gargoyles on old buildings. Atget was clearly interested in the way the old classical style was being kept alive in France at the time. This work reminds me a bit of Karl Blossfeldt's plant photography, which also sought to elevate the overlooked details of the natural world. It shows that all art is part of an ongoing dialogue, a conversation across time.