Philadelphia (1983 GF-13)

A graduate of the Chicago Institute of Design (1959), Ray K. Metzker’s practice is marked by a sustained investigation into photographic qualities, especially light. In the City Whispers series, light—and its absence—forms the subject of the photographs more so than the cities that are rendered unfamiliar: Chicago, Los Angeles, and Philadelphia. In this image, shadows dominate the city, charging the contrast-laden photograph with a weight that gives way to a moody, brooding sense of imminent change that many have described as “noir.” Segmented into light and shadow, the street and its occupants are divided.