Untitled (couple dancing at ball) 1965

Robert Burian made this small gelatin silver print with a camera, and it’s a kind of snapshot of people from what seems like another time. It’s amazing to think about the artist Burian with their camera at this ball, choosing to capture this couple as they dance. What caught their eye? It’s like he was painting with light, deciding what to leave in and what to leave out of the frame. He included another group of dancers over to the left, but the composition leads us back to the couple, who are at the center of the action. The photographic paper is almost like a canvas, holding the light and shadow in place. I can imagine the artist in the darkroom, carefully developing the image to bring out the contrast and detail. Painters, photographers, sculptors, filmmakers – we’re all trying to capture something real, but also something felt.