Afrikaner rundvee op de boerderij van Willem van den Berg in Transvaal, Zuid-Afrika 1967 - 1971

Curator: Welcome to this exploration of Willem Jacob van den Berg's photographic work. We’re looking at "Afrikaner rundvee op de boerderij van Willem van den Berg in Transvaal, Zuid-Afrika", captured sometime between 1967 and 1971, a gelatin silver print depicting cattle on a farm. Editor: Gosh, that’s a mouthful! What strikes me immediately is this intense quiet. Despite the herd of cattle and the farmhand in the background, it exudes a calm almost melancholy atmosphere. Like time is suspended. Curator: Interesting. Methodologically, I’m drawn to the contrasts in light and shadow; it articulates depth within the composition, differentiating the herd's masses. The spatial organization reflects elements of classical landscape photography—the horizon, for instance. Editor: I see them too, but that starkness makes me a little uncomfortable, especially given the era it's from. It’s as though something lies unseen beneath this documentary surface, raising uneasy questions about land, ownership and maybe even legacy. It might simply show an aspect of ordinary farm life from the time. Curator: Certainly, the formal strategies—realism manifested via photography—foreground a certain empirical truth claim. Though, from a semiotic viewpoint, the repetitive figures of the cattle risk allegorizing a commentary on labor, or maybe a national mythos, or an old testament narrative. Editor: Oh, national mythos alright; something tells me we don't even want to go there… but if you look at it from a perspective like that it becomes an interesting way of dealing with questions like colonialism or maybe land appropriation without saying too much directly, like whispers in black and white. Curator: Indeed, while Van den Berg is celebrated for imbuing everyday scenes with a particular formal clarity, these inherent tensions certainly enhance an introspective encounter. Editor: It definitely goes beyond just cows in a field. And yet, cows in a field it also really is. Quite a thought provoking juxtaposition if you think about it like that.