Gezicht op een sloot met molens, bebouwing en mensen in Wormerveer c. 1875 - 1910

Curator: This photograph offers a glimpse into late 19th century Wormerveer. Attributed to Andries Jager, it is entitled "Gezicht op een sloot met molens, bebouwing en mensen in Wormerveer" which translates to “View of a canal with mills, buildings and people in Wormerveer.” It's a striking image made with photographic print methods. What's your first take on this piece? Editor: Well, there’s a calmness to it, almost melancholic. The soft tones, the quiet stillness of the water... it evokes a feeling of a time long past. The windmills feel like sleeping giants. Curator: It’s interesting that you pick up on that melancholy, because these images of windmills are frequently idealized symbols of a productive Dutch landscape. Here, the stillness of the water might reflect the quiet hum of industry, of a community intertwined with its landscape and, also, reliant on its resources. Editor: True, the windmills were essential, a source of livelihood. But to me, there's something more subtle at play. The almost dreamlike quality of the photograph lends it a certain distance, suggesting both the enduring power and inevitable passing of this way of life. The row of figures almost seems spectral, fading with the light. Curator: Photography at this time offered a distinct way of capturing detail, a kind of hyperrealism that also seemed to make scenes feel so immediately true, so present. How might the emerging technologies of photography have shifted people's understanding of realism in art? Editor: Photography changed everything! Prior to photography, the depiction of mills and landscapes were romantic and stylized to tell us more about the sublime aspects of nature. As photography made inroads, artists felt challenged to engage more with their subject. Instead of pure illustration, realism now invited us to reflect on time, on memory and mortality itself. Even something as mundane as the presence or absence of light can tell a complex story. Curator: You've made me look at the mills differently! I came in focusing on industrial technology, but I see now that it invites a slower, more introspective reading of how these familiar forms still stand the test of time. Editor: Exactly! We think of windmills, canals and landscapes as symbols of Dutchness, but here it also feels like Jager captures Wormerveer as a transient experience. Something to be cherished, certainly, but also remembered.