S.O. Goenoengsari. S.L. Menampoe vanaf Soekorenobaan genomen richting fabriek. 30-4-27. 1927

This photograph, taken on April 30, 1927, shows a landscape in S.O. Goenoengsari. I see it and wonder, who was holding the camera? What kind of relationship did they have with the people in the photograph, and what did they think of the landscape? I imagine that whoever took the photograph was inspired by the straight line of the waterway. The composition emphasizes the perspective—your eye is drawn to the horizon line. I wonder if the photographer had any influence from the painters working at the time. It reminds me a bit of the landscapes of Mondrian, who was trying to find a simplified version of reality. Taking pictures is like making paintings; a constant conversation between abstraction and figuration, and the tension of reality.