Gezicht op Lake Rotorua c. 1865 - 1875

Curator: This gelatin silver print, "Gezicht op Lake Rotorua," presents a striking, nearly ethereal view. It was taken circa 1865 to 1875 by Daniel Louis Mundy, capturing a moment in time with what I sense as a pictorialist’s eye. What do you make of its atmosphere? Editor: Ethereal's the word! It's got this dreamy, soft focus thing happening, like a memory half-remembered. Sort of wistful, maybe? Though it feels a little unsettling, too—the angle is strange, disorienting. Curator: That tilted perspective disrupts the conventional landscape, doesn’t it? Pictorialism often employed techniques to mimic painting, imbuing photographs with artistic subjectivity. This landscape becomes not just a depiction of a real place but a symbolic landscape. The lack of sharp details... the almost ghostly quality...it almost hints at another realm, doesn’t it? Perhaps a reverence for this specific place? Editor: Totally! It’s like Mundy wasn’t just snapping a photo; he was trying to conjure something more...spiritual. The silver gelatin gives it a vintage vibe, but it’s not just about the age. Look how the light plays on the water. There’s something alive there. Maybe he's capturing not just the lake, but the very essence or memory of it. What kind of meanings or ideas do you see woven into the photograph through these artistic choices? Curator: I find it quite evocative. Water, especially in pictorial traditions, represents the subconscious, and that blurred focus perhaps emphasizes a transition, the dissolution of tangible boundaries between reality and reflection, time and timelessness. Think of Lake Rotorua itself – a volcanic landscape, a source of both power and fragility... all those meanings would have carried so much significance to both the Maori and colonisers. This isn’t a neutral landscape, this carries all kinds of weight, and perhaps loss, too. Editor: That makes a lot of sense! You know, it is thought provoking that through deliberate distortions of reality, the image conveys layers of cultural meaning beyond just a pretty landscape. Well, thanks for unpacking all the subtle and powerful meanings in Mundy's photography. I see this work in a completely new light now. Curator: Likewise! Delving into it alongside your unique perspective certainly revealed depths unseen before.