Calla Lily (section)

This intimate close-up of a calla lily transforms a simple flower into something almost sculptural. Tina Modotti, an Italian photographer working in Mexico during the 1920s, had a remarkable eye for finding abstract beauty in everyday subjects. By zooming in so closely that we see only curves, shadows, and soft gradations of light, she turns the lily into a study of form itself. The velvety texture and gentle folds could almost be mistaken for fabric or even human skin.

Modotti was part of a circle of artists and activists in Mexico City, and her photography balanced political passion with pure aesthetic experimentation. She learned much from her mentor and lover, photographer Edward Weston, who also made striking images of peppers and shells. But Modotti's work carried its own sensibility, one that found elegance and sensuality in nature without being overly romantic about it. This photograph shows how a simple shift in perspective can reveal hidden qualities in the most familiar things.