Oude Schans hoek 1ste Batavier Dwarsstraat te Amsterdam 1870 - 1926

Editor: Right, next up we have Willem Wenckebach’s “Oude Schans hoek 1ste Batavier Dwarsstraat te Amsterdam," created between 1870 and 1926. It's an etching—quite a detailed cityscape, really, in monochromatic print. I am immediately drawn to the quiet stillness in it, although, there seems to be something alive on it too, maybe a glimpse of humour, maybe a glimpse of life as it happens! What captures *your* eye, your imagination here? Curator: Well, darling, it's that push-pull you picked up on, isn’t it? This scene exists in this perpetual balance of serene calm and bustling everyday-ness, doesn't it? The etching breathes in and out: the solidity of the architecture meeting the flitting leaves, and oh, isn't the suggestion of movement there despite the still, printed quality? Makes you think of ghosts and shadows and echoes. The etching is done very much in a representational manner. It *exists* – the buildings have very human like characters if you follow, wouldn't you agree? Editor: Oh absolutely. In a way that it's incredibly life-like. With such sharp detail, though, what kind of Amsterdam do you think he was trying to portray? Is there any sort of underlying message within it? Curator: Wenckebach captures an Amsterdam caught between eras, I think. He invites us to feel the soul of this corner. Can’t you imagine strolling these streets yourself and meeting a memory? His affection for his birthplace, for that life seems to burst forth from it for all the world to embrace! A time capsule, but so so vibrant! What an accomplishment! Editor: I completely agree. I find the historical context much more poignant having seen it through Wenckebach’s eyes. Thanks for your perspective! Curator: Anytime, darling! Always lovely to wander those streets!