Gezicht op de Avançon en twee portretten Possibly 1938

Editor: This page from an album, "Gezicht op de Avançon en twee portretten," potentially from 1938, consists of albumen prints of portraits and a landscape. The everyday nature and placement on the album page give a diaristic feel, almost like an informal history painting. What’s your interpretation of the combined images? Curator: The act of compiling photographs like this speaks volumes about the impulse to create personal archives. Consider the late 1930s, the political climate in Europe, and the increasing fragility of life for many. These portraits, juxtaposed with the rushing Avançon River, evoke a sense of place and identity carefully being preserved against the backdrop of impending historical shifts. Editor: It's interesting that you mention the broader historical context. Is the juxtaposition of a landscape with portraits typical for albums from this time period? Curator: While individual portraits in albums were common, the deliberate pairing with a landscape, specifically one evoking movement and force like the river, could signify an intention to connect personal narratives with the landscape itself. It suggests a rootedness, a claim to belonging. Think of how portraiture and landscape have traditionally been used in more formal settings to convey power and legacy. How does this intimate setting alter that tradition? Editor: It flips it somehow...it domesticates power, making history tangible, local, and familiar. The anonymity of the album's creator also gives the work an ordinary, universal quality. Curator: Precisely. We see not just personal mementos but a form of resistance, using personal history to withstand an unstable era. What do you make of the handwriting and captions alongside each print? Editor: I didn't see it that way before, but the handwriting and captions alongside, become an active addition to the personal archiving we have already mentioned. Thank you for enlightening me with that. Curator: And thank you for framing the questions that give an insightful direction. The collaborative effect makes this ordinary grouping far from conventional.