Gezicht op de Sandelbrug in de Wampoe rivier, Tandjong Poera, Langkat Sumatra c. 1890 - 1900

Editor: Here we have an incredible gelatin-silver print, a photograph by Heinrich Ernst & Co, taken sometime between 1890 and 1900. It's titled "Gezicht op de Sandelbrug in de Wampoe rivier, Tandjong Poera, Langkat Sumatra"— "View of the Sandel Bridge on the Wampoe River..." It's a hazy, almost dreamlike image, really serene. What do you see in it? Curator: Ah, yes, what a wonderful, quiet photograph. The way the bridge spans the water, mirroring the sky's opaqueness, makes me feel like I'm stepping into a different world. It whispers of humid mornings, of the gentle lapping of water against the stilted houses. And, you know, these colonial-era photographs... They always make me wonder about the photographer's perspective. Were they really capturing an objective reality, or framing a world for a European audience? Editor: That’s a great point! The perspective feels a bit detached, doesn’t it? Like we are viewing a landscape, not necessarily interacting with it. Do you think that ties into the orientalist style? Curator: Absolutely. This controlled gaze, this framing of the "exotic," was very much part of the orientalist project. But isn’t it also beautiful in its way? I can almost feel the air in my lungs and the temperature of the river with the picture. The photograph really captures this incredible time. Editor: I definitely see it now. The bridge seems more than just a structure, it’s a kind of… threshold. Thanks for helping me look at it with fresh eyes! Curator: My pleasure. Every artwork, every photograph is really a gateway to a different reality. If we're lucky, we come out of it seeing our own world a little bit differently.