Gezicht op Mürren, Zwitserland 1873 - 1889

Curator: Let's talk about this fascinating view, captured through the lens of Arthur Gabler, dating somewhere between 1873 and 1889. It's titled "Gezicht op Mürren, Zwitserland"—"View of Mürren, Switzerland." Editor: Right away, I feel dwarfed. It’s sepia-toned, and evokes the weight and enduring majesty of the mountains against these simple buildings below. A stark contrast, the ephemeral versus the eternal. Curator: Absolutely, there's this human scale against the imposing grandeur of nature. I wonder, does the mountain symbolize resilience and endurance to you? Editor: Inescapably so. Think about what mountains have symbolized throughout history—a connection between heaven and Earth. But more particularly here I feel as if these mountains function as both the foundation of something great and looming obstacles—visible markers for both challenge and hope, if you will. Curator: Interesting take, and given the era this photo was taken, I think those are elements that feel very of that time. There’s an attempt to capture something sublime but also it’s such a mundane scene in the village, capturing daily life. Editor: That's exactly it! The "everyday" framed against the immense. And this kind of photography, especially *plein-air*, meant lugging equipment to remote places to truly capture this feeling! So the very act of creation imbues a sense of pilgrimage or deep engagement with the sublime landscape. Curator: Which further adds to the layers of interpretation. The *pictorialism* movement adds this filter of dreamy softness over reality. What appears simple is laden with meanings. Editor: It reminds me that photography, even then, was never simply a recording of reality; there's always this perspective imposed by the artist that wants us to reflect and see more. This scene tells not only what can be observed in Switzerland, but speaks to ideas of man and nature, home and the sublime. Curator: It definitely has me thinking differently about how to see landscapes. Editor: And how seeing them changes *us*.