Waterval van de Radau 1868 - 1890

Editor: This is Hermann Selle's "Waterval van de Radau," taken between 1868 and 1890 using an albumen print. It has this dreamlike quality, almost like a staged set. What symbols or underlying ideas do you observe? Curator: Notice how the stereoscopic format itself creates a kind of heightened reality. Waterfalls in Romanticism often symbolize the power and sublimity of nature, and that’s definitely present here. But the crispness of the photographic detail combined with the composition creates this artificiality. Does it remind you of anything? Editor: Almost like theatre backdrop, yes. There's something about how the trees are arranged… it feels very deliberate. Curator: Exactly! And the choice to render the landscape in a way that feels both real and constructed speaks to how photography was used not just to record, but also to shape perceptions of the natural world. Consider the dual waterfall motif. What emotional impact does doubling the main subject have on you? Editor: It feels amplified. Two distinct, yet unified parts composing a larger whole. Maybe hinting at nature’s abundance or its complex character. Curator: I see what you mean. The albumen print intensifies this visual abundance. Its warm tones contribute to that theatrical lighting as well. It's as though Selle aimed not just to document the fall, but to distill an essence of German Romanticism itself into this symbolic image. Editor: I didn’t initially pick up on how deliberate the construction felt, and now it reframes my whole view. Thank you for pointing that out. Curator: My pleasure. Now, I'm off to trace how the symbol of the waterfall manifests across cultures!