Johannes Riemann 1920

Nicola Perscheid made this photograph, Johannes Riemann, using photographic processes, and the results are really interesting. There's a painterly quality to this photograph, where you can see the artist's hand in the manipulations of the developing process, or the ways in which the light and shadow have been orchestrated in the studio. Look at the wall behind the subject - it's completely out of focus, but has a life of its own. The lighting is soft and diffused, which gives the image a hazy, dreamlike quality. The details really draw you in, like the way the light catches the edge of the cigarette, or the little metal clasps on his jacket. These touches create a sense of texture and depth, and they make the image feel very intimate and personal. It reminds me a bit of some of the photographs by Nadar, another photographer who was interested in capturing the character of his subjects through the lens. It’s a reminder that art is always a conversation, with ideas passed back and forth across time.