Gezicht op de waterpoort de Boerenboom in Enkhuizen 1865 - 1896

This is a photograph by Albert Dekema, capturing the Boerenboom water gate in Enkhuizen. What immediately strikes us is the photograph's structure, bisected horizontally by the water line. Above, the stone gate and flanking trees present a textured, solid form, while below, their reflections dissolve into fluid abstraction. Dekema masterfully exploits the mirroring effect, creating a play between the tangible and the ethereal, the architectural and the natural. The symmetry, however, isn’t perfect. The reflections are distorted, subtly destabilizing the formal balance. This disjunction introduces a dialogue between reality and representation, echoing philosophical inquiries into perception and the nature of truth. The photograph invites us to consider how what we see is always mediated, transformed by the very act of looking. Ultimately, Dekema's photograph uses formal elements not just to depict a scene but to question the stability of visual knowledge itself, suggesting that meaning is always in flux.