Voorgevel van Kasteel Hoensbroek 1910

Here's a photographic print of the front of Hoensbroek Castle, made in October 1910. It's monochrome, a simple record of this incredible building, but the grey tones are doing a lot of work. The artist has allowed the light to fall so evenly, and from above, that it's easy to get a sense of the physicality of the castle; the high walls, the imposing towers. There is a real sense of space here. Look how the artist has used the light to create detail, especially around the arched doorway, where the eye is drawn by the contrasting tones. It reminds me a little of some of the architectural studies by Charles Sheeler, another artist who found a way to represent real space in two dimensions. This photograph leaves space for the imagination. We can invent what’s inside.