Onbekende locatie in de Verenigde Staten: gezicht op 'het dorp behorend bij het grote werk' 1936

This gelatin silver print by Wouter Cool captures an unknown location in the United States, offering a gaze upon what's called 'the village belonging to the great work'. I wonder about the 'great work' and Cool’s process here, the translation from a three-dimensional experience to a two-dimensional plane, where everything has a value, and the challenge of balancing detail with the overall composition. In his image, how much of the village to show, and how much to leave to the imagination? Maybe Cool was drawn to this place by its stark beauty, the way the light plays across the structures, or maybe it was the human element—the story of a community built around this 'great work'. You sense Cool's careful observation, seeking out the interplay between light and shadow, revealing the material reality of the site and its emotional resonance. We see Cool grappling with how to represent a place that's both functional and evocative. The picture feels like part of a larger conversation about how we see and understand the world around us.