Russian Ball, New York City 1978

Larry Fink’s photograph, Russian Ball, New York City, captures an intimate moment using light and shadow like paint. The graininess, a kind of texture in itself, adds to the feeling that we're peering into a hidden world. The stark contrast between light and dark carves out the figures, especially the face of the younger man. See how the light glances off his cheekbone? It’s almost sculptural, like Fink is chiseling away at the darkness to reveal something tender, or maybe tense. The older man, half-obscured, leans in—we’re left to wonder what’s being said, or unsaid. This tension between revealing and concealing is classic Fink. Think of Diane Arbus, another artist who found beauty and discomfort in the everyday. Both remind us that art isn’t just about what we see, but how we see it, and what we choose to reveal about ourselves in the process.