Interior of the Temporary House in Mäaboberg 1905

Jacob Evert Wesenhagen made this photograph, 'Interior of the Temporary House in Mäaboberg', sometime around the turn of the century. It's a black and white photograph so it has this particular documentary quality. I find myself wondering what it might have been like to live here. Wesenhagen shows us quite a sparse interior: a table, an elaborate lamp, and a large cupboard. There are a few pictures propped on the table; this makes the space feel more intimate, as if someone has tried to make the place more homely. I wonder what kind of person lived here? The photograph feels very still, very quiet. Was Wesenhagen trying to capture a sense of atmosphere or document the everyday reality of the house and its inhabitants? I think about all the different kinds of spaces we occupy, both temporary and permanent, and how we try to make them our own. Wesenhagen prompts us to reflect on the relationship between space, memory, and identity.