Kertesz’s, Chez Mondrian
The point of this nearly loses its poignancy when I fess to not remembering where it was (not even in what country) that I saw a print of Andre Kertesz’s Chez Mondrian, but the point still feels very valid that it was one of those transformative photographs for me when I saw it, not in content in so much as the quality of the print itself. A photographer can have epiphanies regarding the possibility of expression through technique when they see for the first time the completed print of a master. Quality becomes, after all, a relative thing. Needless to say, these are not ink jets.
This is not meant to overlook the content of this photograph though, as it might as well be a example in perfect composition, rhythm and balance. I dare anyone to start, “well, if I had of shot it I would have…”
photo: Ches Mondrian, 1926, by Andre Kertesz.
(I know for sure I had the same sort of, jesus that’s good moment while seeing Sander‘s prints for the first time. I’d have to think for a bit to come up with others.)
The thing about B/W prints is that they are deceptively simple looking, as if anyone could do it well. I’m kind of glad your blog doesn’t attract the mass of internet forum types, the ones that *will* say they could have done it better using the latest Epson with such and such fine art paper or find something to nitpick about. Kertesz’s print holds such subtlety that one could just stand in front of it daily and ponder on the techniques, chemical combinations, temperatures, etc., used in the making. I haven’t seen this print upclose or in person, but in viewing the small res image, the first thing I asked myself was how small of a lollipop must he have used to dodge the petals of the flower or if getting detail in the hat brim and coat was difficult. I could do this for hours. Thanks for sharing.
That explanation of the deceptive simplicity if the B&W process is spot on. Not only does this apply to the print, but in everything from exposure of the film to the final wash of the print. I guess that’s where my interest in black and white comes from. It’s not something you learn to do well over a month or a year, but it’s literally something that takes decades day in and out to fully control. There are a handful of people in the world that might rightfully call themselves masters at this, and that number shrinks yearly.