Officieren van de Alpenjagers ontvangen orders van een generaal bij het begin van een verkenningstocht in de Dolomieten, vermoedelijk Italianen 1916

This photograph shows Italian Alpine officers receiving orders at the start of a reconnaissance mission in the Dolomites, and was taken by Henri de Rothschild. I’m thinking about how the photographer, Rothschild, composed this shot. He’s caught them in a moment of quiet, before they head off into the mountains. It's all happening in muted tones; even the dark greens of the trees in the background, they're almost like grey brushstrokes. You can almost feel the cold in the air, the weight of their uniforms, and the nervous anticipation of the unknown. The way they huddle, listening intently, reminds me of the solemnity of a religious painting. Perhaps Rothschild, like a painter, was trying to capture a deeper truth about war and duty. It is a moment suspended in time. It has that kind of stillness and depth.