Portret van Charles Gounod 1905 - 1906

This small, undated portrait of Charles Gounod was produced by an anonymous photographer. There's a kind of directness in the photographic process - point, shoot, develop - but you can see how choices about framing and composition, the kind of light, start to complicate that process. The image is black and white, and the tonal range is carefully controlled; the artist has made a decision to represent Gounod, but the physical qualities of the photographic paper, the way it reflects light, are also part of the portrait. I'm interested in the tonal gradations in Gounod's beard. The way that his beard seems to both blend into and emerges from the background. The photographers intention is clear, but the final image contains multitudes. Think of a photographer like Lisette Model who sees the world with clarity and emotion. It reminds us that art is an ongoing conversation.