Visser staat in het water onder een brug before 1901

This black and white photograph by Otto Scharf captures a lone fisherman standing in a river, casting his net beneath a stone bridge. We can assume that the gelatin silver print used to make this image was made using techniques that are the result of industrial production, where photosensitive materials have to be prepared in darkrooms to be used for photographic printing. The print’s monochromatic tones and grainy texture result from chemical processes, which influence its appearance and evoke a sense of timelessness and social realism. The fisherman, rendered in stark detail, seems to represent the working classes laboring with archaic equipment. Note that the work of the photographer here does not necessarily have to do with the hard labor and production involved in craft or design making, but it is rather the labor of documenting it. This highlights the significance of materials, making, and context in understanding the full meaning of an artwork, challenging traditional distinctions between fine art and craft.