The poet Walter Hasenclever, Dresden c. 1917

Hugo Erfurth made this photograph of the poet Walter Hasenclever in Dresden. What grabs me first is the sepia tone, that warm brown wash which brings a strange intimacy to the composition. It’s like time itself has painted the surface. Look closely, and you can almost feel the texture of the paper, the subtle variations in tone suggesting a history of touch and process. It reminds me that artmaking is always a conversation with materials, a dance between intention and accident. The focus is soft, almost dreamlike, emphasizing the vulnerability of the subjects and the overall mood. The light seems to flatten them and draw them forward out of the field. This embrace of ambiguity reminds me of other photographers like Julia Margaret Cameron, who used soft focus and tonal range to create an emotional experience. Ultimately, art is a space for imagination, inviting us to see the world in new and unexpected ways.