ABSTRACT
There is something hypnotic about the woman in the photograph; it is impossible to stop looking at her. She wears a platinum blonde wig and a dark shoulder-padded overcoat. Long, very untidy hair covers her face, so that we do not see her facial expression. Only one blood-shot eye is partially visible, but she does not look directly at the spectator; rather, she is just staring into the void. Her arms are by her side, her
fists tightly clenched, her shoulders hunched. The whole silhouette emanates unreleased tension and rage, as if ready to burst at any moment. The woman looks as if she is about to attack either her potential aggressor or herself. Although her figure does not fill the frame completely, she remains the only theme of the composition. The background details, except for a shadow cast by the woman, are kept to a minimum. The woman’s dark coat and her shadow form a powerful contrast with her almost white, overexposed hair and the white wall behind her. Although the moment is charged with tension, the viewer is left in the dark about the story that is being told here. The photograph provides no real answers.
