Frames for Sale at Via Margutta

I was walking along Via Margutta when the geometry in this shop window stopped me cold. Two empty frames leaned against the glass, one upright, the other tilted sharply as though it had slipped out of formation. Behind them, more frames receded into the dim interior, creating an optical echo — rectangles within rectangles, stretching away into the dark.

I shot it in black and white film, embracing the grain and high contrast that the low light demanded. The texture is almost intrusive, but it adds a grit that feels appropriate for a street scene late in the evening. Exposure was tricky: I wanted to preserve the fluorescent highlights inside the shop without losing the detail in the frames at the front. The compromise left the shadows dense, forcing the eye toward the interplay of light and shape.

Compositionally, I centred the two main frames in the lower half, letting the reflections and layers above fill the rest of the space. The tilted frame interrupts the otherwise strict symmetry, lending an accidental dynamism. It’s a still life made entirely of absence — the frames hint at content that’s not there, their purpose defined by what they might hold.

In the end, the photograph became less about documenting a shop display and more about playing with the visual paradox of framing emptiness.