Versailles, Le Parc 1906 - 1907

Eugène Atget made this photograph, *Versailles, Le Parc*, using a process that feels very much like slow painting. The sepia tones create this overall feeling of something remembered. Look at the way Atget renders the stone steps and balustrades. There's a kind of blurry softness to the image, like he's building up layers of tone. See how the light catches the edges, defining the forms while also softening them. He's not just documenting, he's feeling the space, letting the light and shadow describe it. The photograph reminds me a little bit of Corot's landscapes. Both artists share a similar feeling for capturing the mood of a place. Like painting, photography has this unique capacity to show us a different way of seeing, one that embraces ambiguity and the play of light and shadow.