Ondergelopen Seine-oever met bomen, boten en publiek tijdens overstroming van Parijs 1910 - 1911

Editor: This photograph, titled "Ondergelopen Seine-oever met bomen, boten en publiek tijdens overstroming van Parijs," was taken sometime between 1910 and 1911 by G. Dangereux. The whole image is imbued with a serene, almost melancholy mood. What do you see in this piece? Curator: Melancholy, yes, I think it has to do with the stillness, despite the implied drama of a flooded cityscape. To me, this isn’t just a record of a disaster; it's Dangereux searching for beauty in a disrupted world. Think about how the Impressionists sought to capture fleeting moments, like the way light glances off the water, but also consider the artist as a witness, standing there documenting what's going on, how people react. The organic shapes of the bare trees become these complex lines drawing the eye towards a steamboat lost in the background, but also emphasizing the organic world. The viewer sees organic shapes but does it recall an absence in contrast with its overwhelming scale? What feelings emerge within you? Editor: Absence… It feels still. There are people on what is left of the streets, so it's like time stopped. Like it could be 1910 or today. I wonder how people dealt with this kind of disaster? Curator: Exactly! Disasters force reflection. Notice how Dangereux frames the shot: not a complete panorama of devastation, but intimate and confined by the trees. And that sepia tone, characteristic of early photography, amplifies the sense of timelessness. Is he emphasizing the universality of such natural events? Does it tell us that regardless of innovation we have to endure as society? I wonder if he was pondering our ability to move on? Editor: It makes me think of climate change, and how we react today, and maybe *don't* react. Art has so many lessons. Curator: Indeed. It invites us to look back so that we are looking forward, a way to explore time. Maybe the flood shows not destruction, but the unstoppable force of nature we coexist with. It inspires questions and contemplation, doesn’t it?