Grote Markt in Nijmegen met rechts de Boterwaag en op de achtergrond de toren van de Sint Stevenskerk c. 1905 - 1907

This small photograph shows the Grote Markt in Nijmegen, and was made by Folkert Idzes de Jong. It's a landscape of grey buildings in the centre square of the town, a place where people meet and connect, a place of encounters. When I look at this picture, I think about the way that paintings function as records. The image of the buildings and the street come into being through the touch of the artist’s hand, developing and shifting through intuition. What was it like for this artist standing out in the square? What was he thinking when he pointed his camera? The image is captured by light and shadow, tone, and texture. The photograph exists as an echo of an artist's individual expression. The act of making art is about ongoing conversation, across time, inspiring one another’s creativity.