Tandradspoorweg en spoorbrug in de Anaikloof op Sumatra c. 1900 - 1920

Christiaan Benjamin Nieuwenhuis made this gelatin silver print of the Anai kloof in Sumatra. I love the sepia tones, and the light, how it dapples the tracks and bridges—you can almost feel the humidity. The scene is so well-balanced with the curve of the tracks set against the strong verticals of the trees, and then the horizontals of the bridges. I wonder if Nieuwenhuis had to hike into the jungle with all his equipment to get this shot? The engineering of the track must have been astounding for the time. I imagine him setting up his camera, composing the shot carefully, waiting for the right moment. It reminds me of those old railway posters, like the work of Cassandre, but without the machine age futurism. There is a stillness and a silence. Painters are always looking at photographs; this one makes me think of how artists are in conversation with each other and the world around them, translating lived experience into form, line, and feeling.