I'm rather obsessed with this one, striking and evocative and rather iconic feeling, but which refuses to be pinned down. The back of the postcard dates it to the 1910s or early 20s, I believe (I took some time comparing this exact font and format to other real photo postcards and that seems to be the period of use), meaning it pre-dates Magritte's earliest man in bowler painting by at least a few years, though those are what it immediately calls to mind, or to my mind at least. Which isn't inherently surprising--men wore bowlers, and sometimes were photographed from behind--but look closely here and it appears to be a shag rug than actual grass that he stands on, which, together with the oversized proportions of his coat, certainly lend a certain sense of the constructed surreal to the photograph (and make me think of Joseph Beuys, and David Byrne, too!) Simultaneously, it resonates as a poignant portrait of a "man in suit," generally, and maybe a traveling salesman, specifically--staring into the void, waiting (for the train, at the door, for something interesting to happen, etc.). Visually striking, absurd, mundane, poetic, self-aware, metaphorical/allegorical, of its time and beyond it, etc etc., all at once.
5 1/2" x 3 1/2" and in very good condition, some scattered light smudges to the unused postcard back.
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