absolutely stunning. the posture is so bleak and forlorn...you really get a sense of tragedy and despair. the blurred focus works extremely well with this image, representing not just the figure as out of focus, but your thoughts, your feelings, your life...like you are lost and cannot find your way back, don't know which way to turn. the molding of the form with the shadows and highlights helps to perpetuate those thoughts as if you are half in and half out of awareness of the world around you. the composition is very strong with the triangle being formed by the figure. as we know, three points define a plane in geometry, which is why the triangle or sets of three make an image so visually stable. it is grounded, yet grounded in that sorrow...as if the figure wishes to stay and absorb that pain as a lesson, or savor every bit of sweet agony since it is the only remaining aftertaste of what is gone. the van dyke process works very well with the mood and tone of the image. the brush marks almost like dirty windows smeared to block the light, or bars on a window, put there by who? the figure? to keep inside? or to keep others out? there is so much symbolism in the image that i am amazed. i think that this is such a powerful, eloquent image.
0 
