The Corner of the Herengracht and the Gasthuismolensteeg 1890 - 1900
Dimensions height 359 mm, width 307 mm, height 475 mm, width 416 mm
This photograph by George Hendrik Breitner captures a street corner in Amsterdam, a moment frozen in silver gelatin. The image’s monochrome palette speaks to the historical processes involved in its creation, a stark contrast to today's instant, color-saturated photography. What I find compelling is how the material qualities of photography shape our perception. The grey tones, the grain, the way light and shadow play across the scene, all these create a sense of distance, both in time and empathy. Look at the figures populating the street: the man in the foreground, the workers with their cart. The photograph doesn’t romanticize their labor; instead, it presents it with a matter-of-factness, highlighting the social realities of the time. Breitner's choice of photography as a medium, rather than painting, reflects a shift towards capturing modern life in all its unvarnished reality. It encourages us to consider the lives of those depicted, and the labor involved in producing not only the goods transported on that cart, but also the image itself.
Comments
The painter and amateur photographer Breitner walked many miles in Amsterdam with his camera, sketchbook or paint box at hand. The absence of a central subject and abrupt cropping of his photographs deviated entirely from the norms of painting. Regardless of this, Breitner’s shots often served as inspiration for his paintings. The negatives and prints were discovered only forty years after his death.
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