Landschap bij mist before 1903

Editor: Here we have "Landschap bij mist," or "Landscape in Mist," by Otto Bruns, likely created before 1903. It’s a gelatin silver print, and the scene feels so quiet and still, almost melancholic. What do you see in this piece? Curator: The mist itself is a powerful symbol. Across many cultures, mist and fog represent uncertainty, the veil between worlds, or a transition. Notice how it obscures details, creating a sense of mystery but also perhaps hinting at hidden truths or suppressed memories. What feelings does this evoke in you? Editor: That's interesting. I guess I hadn't considered the symbolism of the mist itself. It makes me think about half-forgotten stories or things that are just out of reach. Curator: Precisely. The trees, silhouetted against the soft light, act as guardians, sentinels marking the passage between what is seen and unseen. And the use of gelatin silver print— a popular photographic medium at the time —allowed Bruns to manipulate the tonal range, intensifying this dreamlike atmosphere. Editor: So the medium itself contributes to the mood? It feels so different from, say, a sharply focused modern photograph. Curator: Indeed. This isn’t just a recording of a landscape. It’s a construction of a feeling, an attempt to evoke a mood resonant with the viewer’s own experiences and understanding of such iconography. Do you see any other details that reinforce these ideas? Editor: Looking at the lower portion, the reflections in the water almost seem to mimic the world above, distorted and softened, implying this blurring between the real and the imagined. It makes me consider Pictorialism now. Curator: Exactly! Bruns successfully captures an emotional landscape – and demonstrates a key artistic objective of the Pictorialism movement.. It’s not simply about the surface appearance but rather, what the symbol of the land evokes within us. I’m glad you picked up on the reflective mirroring and mirroring meaning. Editor: It definitely provides more than just a visual experience – a deeply symbolic and thought-provoking study of atmosphere and emotion.