Aunt Marcia, Newton, MA, 1971 ©Henry Horenstein
This photograph by
Henry Horenstein is a portrait of his Aunt Marcie from his book “Close
Relations.” In the picture his Aunt is portrayed sitting on a floral patterned sitting
chair in what seems to be a living room. There is a table to her right holding
a fruit lamp, drink coasters, a mug with a utensil sticking out, two jewelry
boxes, a pair of glasses and what looks like a vase with a fake flower. On the
other side of her is another table with a plant holding up a painting. The
carpet is somewhat shaggy while the walls look plain and are made of wood. And
Marcie has her legs crossed very lady like, with her hands resting on her legs.
She has a nice vibe because of her half-smile. The composition is somewhat
symmetrical. The 70’s vibe radiates from this photograph.
This photograph is
showing a place of comfort for the subject, who is Henry Horenstein’s Aunt
Marcie. Although she looks slightly dressy in a long sleeved dress, she is
wearing no shoes which show she is comfortable in the setting of the picture.
Also, her body language is very relaxed in the pose she is taking. You can see
the ‘close relation’ between the photographer and the subject because of how at
ease and welcoming she seems. This is most likely her living room because of the
mug with the utensil sticking out and the glasses lying on the table. She seems
to be middle class because nothing in the photograph yells out wealthy
furniture or objects. Because the painting she owns is just placed on a table
propped up by a plant, I assume that this could be painted by her or someone
she knows. It could be a gift she got and just placed there for time being.
I believe this
photograph ties in with the rest of Henry Horenstein’s work well. It especially
compliments the rest of his work from his first series “Close Relations.”
Horenstein shot the series suring his time as a student at Rhode Island School
of Design. He wanted to capture his friends, family, as well as other people he
grew up knowing. His portraits capture a part of his own history, which was
another goal of this series. All the photographs tell a story of someone and
allow you to take a peek into their lives.
