Hotel Schoonoord en trambaan te Oosterbeek 1860 - 1880

Editor: This is a gelatin-silver print, "Hotel Schoonoord en trambaan te Oosterbeek", created sometime between 1860 and 1880 by J.S.J. de Jongh. It gives such a melancholic and quiet feeling; the bare trees lining the tram tracks emphasize the stillness. What grabs your attention most in this piece? Curator: Ah, stillness! Yes, you've touched on something vital. For me, it's the hushed anticipation. The tram is there, poised, a technological marvel amidst the bare trees, almost as if it's holding its breath. It's more than just a cityscape, isn’t it? De Jongh, through this gelatin-silver print, captures a transient moment—a society on the cusp of tremendous change. Does the photographic process itself suggest something to you, considering when it was made? Editor: Well, it feels… deliberate? I mean, capturing a scene like this back then must have been quite the undertaking, unlike today when everyone can snap a photo with their phone! Curator: Precisely! The long exposure times would have meant a carefully composed scene. De Jongh wasn't just documenting; he was curating reality, choosing the precise angle, the precise moment, to convey his vision. Almost like painting with light and shadow. It makes me wonder what Oosterbeek was like then, what the people hoped for as this new technology entered their lives. Doesn’t it all feel somehow dreamlike and grounded at once? Editor: That’s a beautiful way to put it, dreamlike and grounded. Thinking about it, the realism mixed with that sense of anticipation makes the scene feel more… poignant. Curator: Absolutely! And that poignant feeling, that's the art reaching out, whispering stories from the past into our present. Thank you for pointing me to look more closely here, the artist’s selection seems so purposeful.