Gezicht op een kerk te Purmerend 1893

This photograph of a church in Purmerend was captured by Josephus Hendrikus Petrus Coppens. It may seem like a simple record, but look closer, and you'll see it’s an object deeply rooted in the history of photographic practice. The sepia tone comes from the developing process, which relied on the careful management of light and chemistry. Each print would have been unique, affected by the atmospheric conditions. Before the rise of digital photography, this kind of image was how people understood their world – mass-produced, yet individual. There's labor embedded in this image, not only in the taking and printing, but also in the making of the church itself. Consider the stone masons and carpenters who raised the structure, compared to Coppens, who captured it in a moment. The photograph democratizes access to the church, making it portable and reproducible. Ultimately, this artwork is a reminder that every image, whether painting or photograph, bears the traces of its making, connecting us to the past in tangible ways.