Haunting Imagery in Insomnia

I was glancing over Jeff Wall's work, and I stopped on Insomnia. Of course I'd seen it before... in class. But this time, something caught me. I had never really given the man much notice, and instead looked at the untidy room around him. The window, although dark, also calls attention. I find, however, when we block all that out, we really can focus in on what Sava calls "his impassive gaze" (Sara, 64). Spooky, huh? I have a hard time putting the incredible unease I find into words, just framing this man rather than the room surrounding him.

The clutter almost protects us, the viewer, from having to get to close to him. In an odd way, I almost prefer the picture in this fashion. Without that wall between us and him, the picture becomes painfully personal, up-close and awkward. Which isn't exactly how I wanted to end the class, so... here's this guy to balance everything out. I hope to see you all again some time!