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Phil Douglis | all galleries >> Galleries >> Gallery Fifty: Using silhouettes as abstract symbols and metaphors > Repairs, Sky City, Acoma Pueblo, New Mexico, 2007
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07-NOV-2007

Repairs, Sky City, Acoma Pueblo, New Mexico, 2007

Much of the Acoma Pueblo was built in the 16th and 17th centuries from materials hand carried up the steep slopes of a 367-foot high mesa. There is no electricity, and those who live here want it that way. The old buildings require maintenance and that is what is happening here. The place is called Sky City, and on this day, its own sky offered both contrails and a "sun dog," a halo caused by ice crystals in the sky. I exposed for that sky with my spot meter, which caused all of the shadow areas in the image to darken, and the man to become a silhouette. We see his active shape in one dimension. As a silhouette, he becomes lonely symbolic figure facing a great challenge, one man who must somehow keep the crumbling world around him from falling apart.

Leica V-Lux 1
1/800s f/11.0 at 7.4mm iso100 hide exif
Full EXIF Info
Date/Time07-Nov-2007 15:48:28
MakeLeica
ModelV-LUX 1
Flash UsedNo
Focal Length7.4 mm
Exposure Time1/800 sec
Aperturef/11
ISO Equivalent100
Exposure Bias-0.33
White Balance
Metering Modemulti spot (3)
JPEG Quality
Exposure Programprogram (2)
Focus Distance

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Phil Douglis28-Nov-2007 00:44
I love your phrase "toil in action, Kal. Your words illuminate the meaning of this image for me.
Kal Khogali27-Nov-2007 22:06
Again for me the impact of scale is significant here, as is the gloom created by the lighting and exposure choices. A toil in action. K
Phil Douglis20-Nov-2007 04:21
Once again, Patricia, you have interpreted a silhouette as a universal symbol -- in his case humanity itself, in is struggle to keep a leaking world above water. I wanted the scale incongruity to evoke loneliness, and I wanted to create a complementary mood very much in the mold of Edward Hopper's paintings -- the very artist who you have saluted in your own galleries just this week.
Patricia Lay-Dorsey20-Nov-2007 04:09
I experience this image on many levels. The first is purely personal. It brings back memories of my only visit to Acoma back in 1990. It's a place filled with a spiritual intensity that permeates every nook and cranny. So I see this not just as symbolic of one man trying to hold the buildings together, but of humanity trying to hold our world together. This can be a lonely pursuit, as evidenced in the mood of this photo.
Phil Douglis19-Nov-2007 22:43
Thanks, Rose Marie, for adding a fresh layer of meaning to this image. I shot this instinctively, but since expressive images often accumulate meaning in the viewing, your gender-related observations make perfect sense here. As for the magical sky, all of us were stunned by what was going on up there while we are on the mesa. I am glad that this image conveys a sense of that as well.
sunlightpix19-Nov-2007 19:35
The sky really captures the magic of Acoma for me.
Acoma is a matriarchial society - men are assigned the menial tasks, while the women hold the wealth, property and positions of power and governing. Your sihouette renders him one dimensional and your scale makes him appear small - the typical place for men in this society.
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