Detailopname van een gewas c. 1900 - 1940

Editor: This is a photograph called “Detailopname van een gewas,” by Richard Tepe, circa 1900-1940, and housed here at the Rijksmuseum. The close-up of the plant feels so… tactile, almost sculptural in its form, even though it's just a photo. What captures your attention when you look at this? Curator: Ah, yes, Richard Tepe. I'm immediately drawn to how he elevates what might seem like the mundane – a simple plant – into something monumental, something almost… mythical. He's playing with light and shadow to sculpt form and imbue it with a sort of hidden life, don't you think? It feels a little gothic to me, something pulled from a Bronte novel. Does it evoke that feeling for you too, or am I lost in my literary reverie again? Editor: Gothic, yes! The dark shapes against the pale backdrop definitely lend that air. And it’s funny you say “mythical,” because it almost looks like some kind of strange offering placed on the plant. Are those berries, maybe? Or something else entirely? Curator: Yes! An offering, exactly! The artist uses shadow and texture so intentionally. Are those dried fruits? Seeds, perhaps? He makes them bold, enigmatic… I almost feel as if I am intruding on a sacred, hidden ritual performed by… by garden gnomes, perhaps? Ha! I'm not entirely sure why gnomes jumped into my mind! The composition reminds me of those close-up floral studies by Karl Blossfeldt but there is more mysterious narrative in play. Do you agree? Editor: Definitely a mysterious narrative. It’s like we’re only catching a glimpse of a larger story unfolding in this hidden world. So, it is as if the image unlocks a whole imaginative space. Curator: Precisely! And it reminds us that even in the smallest details of nature, there's a whole universe waiting to be discovered, re-interpreted and spun into fantastic tales. I can see stories in everything if I stare long enough! Thanks, I’ll take this strange narrative of garden gnomes away with me. Editor: Absolutely. Thanks for unlocking some of those secrets. Now, off to ponder the garden gnomes!