Duitse officieren 1940 - 1945

This curious collection of photographs of German officers from an unknown date and by an anonymous artist is stuck in a scrapbook, immortalized. I imagine the artist carefully placing each image, arranging them on the page, and making a strange and fascinating composition. What did they think about when creating it? The officers are caught unaware, engaged in various activities, such as standing outside, sitting at desks, and generally doing whatever officers do! The textures of the photographs themselves offer a sense of history, a layering of the past onto the present. The monochromatic tones evoke nostalgia. I’m drawn to the small details: the sharp lines of a uniform, the light reflecting off a pair of spectacles, the way the light falls on the officers’ faces. The artist invites us to observe and contemplate, in much the same way painters encourage their audience to engage with their creations. Artists are in constant conversation with each other, even across time, inspiring each other to play with different possibilities and ways of expression.