Façade van het voormalige jachtslot van Oldenbarnevelt of Torenzicht te Poeldijk 1904

This old photograph of a facade was made in Poeldijk, maybe a hundred years ago, or more. The photographer is unknown, but the hand of monumentenzorg, the historical preservation society, is all over it. The sepia tones and soft focus give the brickwork and windows a ghostly, dreamlike quality. This isn’t so much about architectural precision, as about the poetics of old buildings and the way they age, and the process of looking, remembering and trying to grasp something about the past. Look at the way the light catches the edges of the roof tiles. It’s almost as if the image is breathing, in that way, it reminds me a little of Atget, the great French photographer. Both artists seem to be driven by a desire to record and preserve something precious before it vanishes. But ultimately, it’s about our connection to the past, a conversation across time.