Monday, July 13, 2009

Anxious moment

I began making life going on photographs in London in the early 1960s. Forty five years later I roamed the streets of Red Hook, Brooklyn, New York and found the Botanica, where Caroline and I have had, over the last three months, the best time drinking coffee and Pisco Sours. Late one afternoon, when Caroline had gone to Fairways, I moved seats to be nearer to this couple who looked promising. She laid her hand on his clasped hands but he made no move to touch back. Perhaps that is why her expression is a look of such uncertainty. The woman in the background, seems just to want to talk.

8 comments:

  1. The talkative woman in the backround reminds me of my mother when she was younger.

    ReplyDelete
  2. yes...and interesting - to me - that the clasped-hand woman still has her shoulder bag on...not because she is in a rush...more that she is so concerned with the potential "big talk" to come she can't focus on anything else - even situating herself...getting comfortable...poor thing - I hope it went well...brings back not-so-happy memories....

    ReplyDelete
  3. This reminds me of that Russian/American couple you photographed in the cafeteria. They were kissing. These two hold hands. But there's still this similar distance between them. Andrea's right, the bag is telling. Where's that lovely waitress?

    ReplyDelete
  4. ah John, Rainbow (the waitress) is no longer at Botanica. I've noticed that subjects in general tend not to stick around very long. And even if they remain in the same place on the whole they don't look like they did when Dmitri first took their photo. Although we did see Rainbow once after the photo was taken and she was still lovely.

    ReplyDelete
  5. I'm not sure about the question of the bag. The bill is about to be given to them, (see lower left) and the young woman may have put her bag over her shoulder in preparation for leaving.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Funny how sometimes people see more in the photo than the photograher does.

    returning to John's wondering about Rainbow. What's wrong? Doesn't the woman that looks like my mother hold your interest?

    ReplyDelete
  7. ah - totally missed the bill that was on the approach...projecting, perhaps...because I never get the bag going until I am actually standing to leave [oh, how FASCINATING, Andrea...alert the media!]...and the bag's being "on" adds to the seemingly uncomfortable space...really does make me wonder how it all turned out...

    ReplyDelete
  8. Rainbow- what a lovely name. And she's a waitress after all. Of course, she's going to move on. Sure, the bill is about to be given- and the bag on her shoulder is her subtle way of saying yes, we're leaving and the the bill is yours. This may surprise you Caroline but no, the woman who resembles your mother does not interest me in the least. Andrea, I'm sure all turned out fine. Just speculation, but I'm sure all turned out fine.

    ReplyDelete