Marsden Hartley 1911

Alfred Stieglitz made this photograph of Marsden Hartley. Looking at this portrait, I’m thinking about the times I’ve been on the other side of the lens. It’s a strange thing, submitting to someone else’s gaze, letting them capture your likeness, or at least, their version of it. I wonder what it was like for Hartley, a painter himself, to be the subject. Did he try to control his expression, or did he surrender to Stieglitz's vision? There's a kind of vulnerability in being seen, really seen, and maybe that’s what Stieglitz was after. There's a gentleness to the light that caresses Hartley’s face, a stark contrast to the sharp angles of his nose and brow. It feels like a tender moment, a quiet exchange between two artists. This makes me think of my own painting practice, and how the works I create, too, are always in conversation with other works, other artists.