Varkenshoeder bij het Naardermeer 1906 - 1908

Editor: We're looking at "Varkenshoeder bij het Naardermeer," or "Swineherd at the Naardermeer," a gelatin silver print taken by Richard Tepe between 1906 and 1908, now at the Rijksmuseum. It has a quiet, almost melancholic feel – like a glimpse into a simpler time. What captures your attention most about this piece? Curator: Ah, yes, Tepe. I feel the grit of the earth just looking at it! You know, it's more than just a picture; it's a little poem about the Dutch countryside. I think of the Golden Age paintings of animals; it echoes those humble scenes. What's curious to me is how he elevates such mundane subjects. Notice the light? It almost deifies the pigherd! Like some forgotten saint of the swampland... Does it strike you that way? Editor: I see what you mean about the light. I was so focused on the figures – the swineherd, the pigs, even the goat! - that I hadn’t really noticed the landscape that way. Curator: Exactly! Tepe wasn't just snapping photos. He was constructing tiny narratives. He had this incredible way of seeing the sacred in the ordinary, capturing souls in the simplest of folk. You know, I imagine Tepe really loved this little corner of the world... What a world of a difference to today’s reality, don’t you think? Editor: Definitely a far cry from today's world. It’s amazing how much feeling Tepe could capture in a simple photograph. It feels much more human and candid than more stylized imagery. Curator: Well said. Next time you look at something, slow down. Let the picture talk to you and see where your heart takes you... That's the magic of art, after all.