Photographer: Thomas Holton
Title: Drying Laundry
The subject matter or this image is the laundry that is being hung out to dry and framing the rooftop landscape of Chinatown above. The intention of the photographer is to showcase an element of traditional daily living and perhaps the silent and unspoken beauty that aligns with it. This image is apart of Holton’s photographic series titled “The Lams of Ludlow Street”. Holton describes the series as “an investigation into the life of one Chinese family living in New York City’s Chinatown neighborhood” (Holton, 2015) He expresses that the series serves as a means to explore and comprehend his connection to his Chinese heritage.
I believe the mood and feeling of the photograph is intimacy, traditionality, and calmness.
In modern days, drying laundry is often done with the single push of the button. You throw your wet clothes in a drying machine, and press start. But in this image, it’s hanging your clothes, one by one, and letting them meet the warm sun and city landscape that overlooks the rooftops.
The three formal elements I’ve chosen are Frame within a frame, Leading Lines and Patterns and Repetition. Holton utilized Frame within a frame in the way that he captured the line of clothing just below the rooftop landscape. Through this technique he emphasizes the skyline and buildings by using the clothing line to “frame it”. Leading Lines are also utilized through the clothing line. The line of the clothing leads off the picture, perhaps to make the viewer think, where is it going? It also works as a line that leads the eye through the city’s landscape, going from left to right. Patterns and Repetition is shown in the colors of the clothing and the hangers on the line. The pattern consists mostly of white and red in both the clothes and hangers.
Through the usage of these elements, Frame within a frame, Leading Lines, and Patterns and Repetition, Holton skillfully guides the viewer’s gaze, emphasizing the skyline and cityscape while capturing the essence of his exploration into his Chinese heritage.
Nicely stated. You clearly interpret the photo.
I don’t know if I would call this a frame within a frame but certainly the photo gets its meaning from the juxtaposition of the clothing – personal, colorful, individual – and the monochrome city in the distance.