Fundaties molenstation gezien vanaf den kalkoven. (October 1926.) 1926

This photograph was taken in October 1926, maybe with one of those big box cameras, from the perspective of a lime kiln. It captures the foundation of a mill station. Look how the photograph is organized around the skeletal structures of what will become the mill station: row upon row of linear support beams and rectangular foundations. I wonder what the photographer was thinking as they considered the composition? Were they struck by the geometry, or the sheer scale of the project? Or were they just trying to get a clear shot? The textures in this picture range from the hard lines of metal to the soft focus of the landscape beyond, and how they create a dance between the macro and the micro, the built and the natural. This reminds me that any artwork, whether painting or photography, is just one of many ways to see, think, and experience the world. It’s an ongoing conversation across time.