Visit to an Oil Field in Purissima Hills, USA Possibly 1908

Here's a small photograph by Geldolph Adriaan Kessler, depicting a visit to an oil field in Purissima Hills, USA. You know, thinking about Kessler out there in the landscape, it’s interesting how the photograph flattens the scene, makes the hills look like gentle swells on a brown sea. I wonder if he was thinking about the scale of things – the smallness of human endeavor against the vastness of the land. The oil derricks punctuate the horizon with their spindly, awkward grace. I imagine him adjusting his camera, trying to capture the quiet hum of industry amidst the open fields. It's as though he's considering the visual language that emerges when documenting progress and place. Was he aware of the dialogue that the photograph enters into? What did he intend to communicate? These images always feel like an ongoing conversation. The history of art and thought—a mishmash of ideas and influences—is a constant source of creative possibilities.