Woman with Shawl, New York City Possibly 1942 - 1976

Curator: Well, hello there. Lisette Model’s “Woman with Shawl, New York City” is up next; this gelatin silver print likely emerged somewhere between 1942 and 1976. What springs to mind for you? Editor: It’s intense! The subject fills the frame with this confrontational energy. I can almost hear her shouting over the New York bustle. It feels so raw and…real. Curator: Exactly! Model had a gift for capturing that unvarnished humanity. Notice how she breaks from conventional portraiture, opting for this brutally honest portrayal. It's fascinating. The use of chiaroscuro also enhances that sense of drama and directness, focusing on texture and form. Editor: The textures are captivating, especially the shawl—it's practically swallowing her. But there is also this strange vulnerability amidst the power… her expression, the way her finger is pointing. I wonder what she is indicating with such emotion. Curator: Perhaps it's less about the specific gesture and more about conveying a general forcefulness, a claiming of space in the crowded urban landscape. What’s powerful here is Model's defiance of the picturesque, using realism as its own poetry, no flattering, just stark presence. Editor: Absolutely. It’s a study in contrasts too—light and shadow, the rough shawl against her worn shoes. The wrought iron railing adds an elegant touch, though faded somehow like old money. But her focus and the tight crop are on this woman. I want to know everything about her. Curator: Me too! That mystery is part of the work's charm. I also love how Model turns what some might consider unattractive into a display of strength, completely subverting typical beauty standards. Editor: It does leave you contemplating the city, the stories of everyday people usually missed, captured with such intimacy and then amplified through her confrontational presentation and framing. I walked right past her the other day, I just know it! Curator: Exactly. A ghost of New York then…a vibrant one. Model gives this woman permanence and makes her someone you can not ignore. Editor: Ha! She's probably yelling at me now! Worth a shot.