Interieur van het Gemeenlandshuis te Delft met schouwstuk 1888 - 1923

This is a photograph, titled Interieur van het Gemeenlandshuis te Delft met schouwstuk, by H.J. Tollens. The muted tones create a contemplative mood, where the fine details of the interior emerge slowly, as if from memory. The surface of the print seems matte, absorbing light rather than reflecting it, which pulls you into the scene, to the intricate carvings of the mantelpiece and the shadowy figure in the over-mantel painting. Look at how the light catches the edges of the columns framing the painting. It is almost as though Tollens is thinking about Baroque painting, but filtering it through a photographic lens. Tollens's picture reminds me of Atget, who photographed Paris shopfronts at the turn of the century. Both photographers are interested in capturing the everyday, but also in revealing the beauty and strangeness that can be found in the most ordinary of places. Art is always a conversation.