Familie in Nederland 1913 - 1930

Theodoor Brouwers made this photograph, Familie in Nederland, and there is a directness in his decision making, like sketching with light. The surface is beautifully aged, there are imperfections in the emulsion, the odd scratch and imperfection, all of which point to the hand of time. It’s so small, really intimate, yet full of social cues that resonate today. Look at how the iron railings run along the left side of the image, their sharp lines drawing the eye, creating a sense of depth. They almost seem to hold the family together, framing them within the neat, ordered space of the city. This image reminds me of Eugène Atget who documented Parisian life, but Brouwers brings his own eye, and it is one that manages to be simultaneously of its time, and absolutely relevant to the contemporary moment. It’s that ambiguity, that refusal to be pinned down, that makes art so endlessly fascinating, isn’t it?