40- jarig regeeringsjubileum van H.M. de koningin, Amsterdam, 6 September 1938. De vorstelijke familie op weg naar de Nieuwe Kerk, voor de officieele herdenking Possibly 1938 - 1939

This photograph was taken on September 6th, 1938 in Amsterdam, to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the reign of Queen Wilhelmina. It’s a record of a moment, a carefully staged procession on the way to a formal ceremony. I find myself drawn to the texture of the image itself. The grainy quality of the photograph adds a layer of abstraction, turning the figures into shapes and patterns. The shadows cast by the figures are strong and almost geometric, creating a visual rhythm that leads the eye across the frame. It’s hard to ignore the grand fur coat worn by one of the figures in the foreground. The texture is so rich, almost tactile, that you can imagine running your fingers through the fur. That coat contrasts so strongly with the flat, almost clinical surface of the photograph, and I wonder if that was intentional. The photo is a reminder that art, even in its most documentary forms, is always a process of selection, interpretation, and ultimately, transformation. Like the work of Gerhard Richter, who also used photographs as source material, this image shows us how a snapshot can be transformed into something more profound.