Drie mannen bij een automobiel c. 1865 - 1900

This photonegative titled 'Drie mannen bij een automobiel' was made by Laurens Lodewijk Kleijn. The inverted tones immediately draw us into a stark and dreamlike scene. The composition is structured by the automobile's boxy form, juxtaposed against the softer, organic shapes of the figures and bare tree branches above. The men, positioned around the vehicle, seem frozen in a moment of interaction, perhaps contemplation. Kleijn uses the formal elements to destabilize our perception of reality. By presenting the scene in a negative format, he encourages us to reconsider the familiar. It is not merely a representation of three men and a car but an exploration of form, light, and shadow. In this disruption, the photograph challenges traditional notions of representation, inviting a deeper consideration of how we perceive the world through images.