Journal | A genius, so to speak, for sauntering

This photograph of pianist Rudolph Ganz arrived in the mail last month. It belonged to my grandfather, then my parents, and now me. It has become an object of contemplation for me.

The story has everything it needs for mass appeal: puppies, death, sex, and the first amendment. Naturally it has enjoyed a lot of attention from the press.

Julius Shulman, who died in earlier his year, is perhaps the premier architectural photographer of the 20th century. He is one of those artists whose work is so strong that it has supplanted our collective memory…