Iarna pe Calea
Victoriei vizavi de Capşa
In winter on Victory Avenue across from Capsa
Winter
on Victory Avenue in a diagonal composition. The
making of such a composition depends on the angle
from which the photographer takes the picture. The
role of the diagonal is always substituted by an
element from the scenery: The façade of a building,
the line of a street or of a sidewalk, the direction
of a certain mean of transportation, etc.
In this image, the diagonal unites the left down
corner (the obscurity zone) to the one from up right
(the aria of maximum visibility), being determined
by the framing mode of the boulevard and by the way
the cars are going. Because going in a contrary way
means going against the wind, the upper right corner
becomes also a security zone. The lonely pedestrian
heads for the obscure area of the image, facing the
blizzard. There are signs that say this walk is made
with difficulty. The sleeves of his coat are covered
in snow, and the arm has a symmetrical position with
the body. There is no alternative move that could
have removed the snow. This body is rigid, probably
frozen.
The image of the pedestrian makes us go to another
of Ionescu’ s photo where a cab driver sitting on
the box of a carriage, probably waiting for
customers, can hardly be seen under the pile of
snow. As the streets, the people are affected by the
snowing.
