Honderdjarig bestaan van de Nederlandsche Spoorwegen 1939 1939

This commemorative medal was struck by F.J. van Hall in 1939 to mark the centenary of the Dutch railways; it is small, dark, and dense. I am interested in the bas-relief: see how the design has been rendered with such care and precision; the train floats, like a futuristic machine from a science fiction movie. The surface, though dark and uniform, reveals a subtle texture, the mark of the die, worn perhaps, with traces of the process visible. It is a record of an event, but also a thing in itself. I love the way van Hall brings together the twin worlds of technological advancement and art, and I am reminded of Duchamp's readymades, and his interest in the beauty of everyday objects, but also the work of Hannah Hoch, who was also thinking about how to make things that had a function beyond decoration. Like the best art, this medal invites us to pause, look closely, and see the world anew.