Joegoslavië, april 1943 1943 - 1944

This photo, "Joegoslavië, april 1943," of women washing and drying laundry, captures daily life during wartime, though the photographer is unknown. There is an openness to the composition that makes it look like the artist is exploring mark making, creating different forms with the same limited palette. The almost clinical quality of the images in the picture is in contrast to its subject. The black and white gives the work an abstract feel. If we focus on the lower right image, of the woman wringing out the heavy wet cloth, we can see the photographer had to be close to capture the intense moment of physical exertion. Look how the dark, wet material is sharply contrasted with the white cloth – it’s a really striking use of chiaroscuro. It reminds me a little bit of Dorothea Lange, but with less social commentary. It has a similar feeling of the everyday. The choice to present multiple images on the same page reminds us that art is a conversation; an exchange of ideas across time and the importance of embracing ambiguity, inviting multiple interpretations.