Details in a Photograph by Bill Wittliff

A seemingly old and uneventful porch of a bar is lit up by a fair haired woman sitting in front of a window. The porch is not dirty, making it look slightly set up. Horizontal wooden slats of different shades are her background and thick wood boards are her foundation. The window is divided into four panes; the top two, smaller, each hold a single word to spell out the name “Dry Bean” in fading white paint. The woman is young, and looks lonely until you catch on to her head cocked to the right, and as the light hits her chin, jaw line, and the side of her neck, there relaxed and slightly playful attitude. Her right shoulder is lifted to meet the side of her face as a resting place.

Long ruffled and lacey fabric drapes over her torso in a deep “V” shape down to her navel. The same old-fashion looking ruffles weigh down the ends of her three-quarter sleeves, which are pushed indifferently to different places on her arms. A patterned calico fabric is the main part of the dress; the pattern is polka-dotted and seemingly floral. By the way the calico fabric lies naturally with waves and wrinkles it is feminine but obviously cheap and thin. Although she’s wearing a dress her legs are spread apart, and her hands lie on her knees pulling the fabric slightly upward. Because of the perception of the photograph, her hands seem proportionally larger than average; her right hand is definitely dominant. Stout working fingers look almost grubby as they cast small dark shadows on the clean dress.

Going downwards, white knees are followed closely by even whiter socks and then dark black boots, laced up several inches past her ankles. The toes of the boots are scuffed and scratched different shades of gray. Only the outer edges of her boots touch the ground. Her legs open up to a “V” shape, but the left leg is pulled farther from center than the right. The inside of her left calf catches the light.

Her face is plain but pretty. Her eyes look straight into the camera but do not stare. Dark brows and lashes strengthen her face. Her mouth, untouched by make-up, softly compliments her face. A tiny shadow on the left by her top lip hints at a knowing smile. Defined cheekbones feminize her face. A mane of sandy blonde hair frames her face. Her hair holds a bounce and wave that can be seen in magazines on the heads of supermodels. But her hair is not pretentious; it is cut to short lengths of thick wisps that are easily pushed back with fingers behind the ear, or tossed back with a small, precise jerk of the head.

Behind the young woman is a shadow that is not her own. It seems to be coming from inside the building and reveals a clashing and outdated pattern of a darkening curtain. The shadow is an odd shape. On her left side is an edgy dark object that seems like a chimney pipe. It extends upwards on her left to a rounded top. The object making the shadow is inconsequential but the shadow itself contrasts the woman’s fair pale skin, hair and dress.

In the upper right corner of the photograph a small wooden sign takes its place in this art. It reads “LAGER BEER” in hand-painted white letters. The function of this sign is to draw away from the symmetry the four pained window imposes. The word “beer” relaxes the picture to a scene of a bar’s porch. It allows the woman the freedom to sit so “unladylike,” though her eyes tell us that she is not even slightly buzzed.