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Eleanor

Harry Callahan

Artwork Details

Eleanor
1948
Harry Callahan
gelatin silver print on paper
7 5/8 x 9 ¼ in. (19.4 x 23.5 cm); ; ;13 15/16 in x 16 15/16 in (35.4 cm x 43 cm)
Gift of Two Friends of the Museum
1991/2.97

Description

Subject Matter:

This is a black-and-white photograph of a dark interior, barely lit by daylight through a window. A large casement window is in the center of the image. In the bottom right corner, a nude woman sits on a chair with her back turned toward the viewer. She faces a set of table and chairs, partially cropped from view. The image stages a dramatic juxtaposition between the deep black of the unlit left and upper sides of the composition and the pure brilliance of white light streaming from the windows. Between these zones are passages of delicate tonal gradation that reveal the uneven texture of the wall. The nude figure, likewise, is materialized through a similar play of tonal juxtapositions: the sharply delimited contours where light strikes her left and right arm contrasts with the middle of her back and head which is enveloped in darkness, receding from view.

Physical Description:

Dark interior lit by window light, featuring a seated nude turned away from the viewer.

Usage Rights:

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