Wednesday, January 30, 2019

Through thin paper, or Reflective, Yes, but Up to a Point


Pages 15 and 16, New York Times, January 27, 2019, through the sunlight.
On a very cold Wednesday, I was catching up to the Sunday New York Times Arts & Leisure section of Jan. 27, 2019, holding it between fingers, the pages spread wide (me wearing my readers). The day was sunny for a change, and light brightened the living room through the picture window. At page 15 of the 16-page section is a story about 21-year-old rapper Kodak Brown. Two photos, one a portrait the other a performance shot, accompany the story. Flip to the next and final page, 16, and there is a story about 78-year-old painter Pat Steir. Four photos, a small portrait, a large image of her "Barnes" series and a couple of detail shots, flesh out the story.
I skimmed both articles, the one about the painter last, and held up the last page to see the Stier photos more closely, then flipped back.
Turns out, newsprint and the ink used to make newspapers, have some magical qualities. One is transparency (and the irony of using the words newspapers and transparency at this particular point in time is not lost on me, but I'm not getting into those weeds right now).
When the paper is held up to the light, the images meld together.
I think the headline for the story about Kodak Brown, "Reflective, Yes, but Up to a Point" captures what happens when the photos from pages 15 and 16 meet in the sunshine.
Here are the pages as they look unreflected.


The original photographs were by Gerardo Mora and Ike Edeani.

No comments: