I'm really feeling the isolation here, also. And how it's so anchored in the new millenium--clothing, those ubiquitos red plastic straws, the tattoo. That understated leading line from left to right and downhill of the table tops points to the solo occupant of the smallest, most tucked in table.
Crowded, lively, colourful... yet a totally relaxing mood. I can imagine standing there across them, listening to snippets of conversation, occasional bursts of laughter. The placement of the phone leaves me desperately wanting to peek around it though. Intentional? Yes, I think so. But why? Who is she? What is she saying/doing/gesturing that I'm not allowed to see?
What seems to jump out at me the most (aside from the phone), are what I see as the three main characters here: Both the girl on the far left and the guy in the middle (talking to Ms Phone), seem to be listening keenly, comfortable and relaxed, their demeanour commands attention in the fray. In stark contrast to the girl on the far right who appears to be alone, isolated, hunched over her sad plastic cup of fruit juice. No-one's talking to her. Do they even know she's there? Maybe she thinks everyone else is so pretentious. She's just going to struggle through her drink then catch the next bus out. Who needs those beautiful people anyway.
Oooh Yeah! I love how there's three things happening here. The main one is the dude chatting to the phone booth with the legs. The group of girls on the left and then there's the girl on the right! Wonderful stuff!!! Where is this place, I like the odds here! :)
this is a particularly voyeuristic image. in other words, it is extremely candid (is that like very pregnant?). just to contradict myself, everyone has posed perfectly for you. but that is why it seems so candid! everyone is mid-gesture. and of course the person who most fascinates us is the one behind the phone. The phone acts as a stand-in, reminding us that none of these people are really here with us, they have all been replaced by stand-ins that we create with our minds.
but to get back to the voyeurism, this piece seems to have these openings into light and color, a rhythm of overlapping peepholes into a vivid world. A tighter crop showing just the right half would be a very different picture. We would be forced to invent a story about the man and woman on either side of the phone, even though we know they are not "together." But leaving 7 people in the picture is too complicated to suggest a single story. The mind is freer to roam through a book of stories, it scintillates. Either way works fine.
Also, there are some strong diagonals in both directions that give the composition a lot of energy.
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