Tempel te Peking before 1920

This is ‘Temple in Peking,’ a photograph by Donald Mennie. We don't know exactly when it was made, but likely somewhere between 1900 and 1944. What I notice is the way the sepia tone flattens the whole thing, giving it this timeless quality like an old memory. Look at how the light catches the tiled roof of the temple, this delicate balance between light and shadow, the way it makes the building almost seem to breathe. You can almost feel the stillness, the quiet hum of history. It's funny, isn't it, how a photograph can feel so tactile. It puts me in mind of some of the early modernist photographers like Alvin Langdon Coburn, with their interest in light, atmosphere, and the way they used photography to capture a sense of place. Ultimately, it’s about the way art invites us to slow down, to really see, and to find beauty in the unexpected.