When a photograph is abandoned or lost, some of the story within it goes too; some, not all. A photograph travels through time stuck in the pages of a book or at the bottom of a shoebox, in a wrinkled old wallet or carefully stuck to the black pages of an old album. When it arrives in our time, it is without provenance. While we must guess at facts like the actual date of the photograph or the model of camera or the location, there is often a rich story left in the image itself.
For a few weeks on Fridays, LOST GALLERY will examine a photograph or two, let them tell their own story.
Today let's look at a portrait, an RPPC, that caught a personality.
Not often is this much character captured in a studio photograph, but when it happens, it is superlative. Wouldn’t you have loved to ask her just one question?
Look at that smile. She is about to burst into a laughter that will permeate your being. There is a humor about to envelop the room, an inner beauty that is an adventure, a love that immerses your heart in indelible joy and anticipation.
Look at that pose. She is ready to spring into a dance. Holding still is not in her repertoire. She is full of embraces and faces and affection. She would be comfortable in the garden swing or astride a palomino.
I would be honored to have shared an afternoon tea or a six-pack with her. Oh, the stories she could tell, the laughter she could share, the memories she could make.
I never knew her but I miss her terribly.
Go back to THE MAIN INDEX PAGE
There are now more than 4,000 photographs in the Lost Gallery. Or try out the NEW BACK PAGE INDEXThe most popular photographs 
Area 51 and a Half 
Don't take my picture! Oh! You DID didn't you! 
And don't missCabinet Card GalleryOne Man's TreasurePenny TalesSquare AmericaTattered and LostVernacular PhotographyThe bestFOUND PHOTOGRAPHsites on the web. And for postcards try THE DAILY POSTCARD. POSTCARDY
All images are the property of Lost Gallery and the author. Permission must be granted for their use. All rights reserved.
THE KIDS 
Dee and the Business School 
WHAT'S GOING ON HERE?
Oh, her smile makes me wish that I had known her!
ReplyDeleteThanks Nonnie. Oh, me too. Look at that face!
DeleteI agree she does indeed have a lovely smile that reveals a good heart and warm nature. She looks dressed for travel and the backdrop suggests to me an amateur photographer. Perhaps she is about to set off on some journey, maybe after finishing school, as I've seen that same smile on many young faces on graduation days.
ReplyDeleteThanks Mike Brubaker. Most of these abandoned photographs have a story to tell and some really just hint at the details. But some are quite eloquent about their subject. In this one, we can not only visualize her world, we can sense how she felt about it.
Delete