Berti Hoppe en Herman Besselaar bij de Rottemeren 1933

Herman Besselaar made this photo collage titled 'Berti Hoppe en Herman Besselaar bij de Rottemeren' using gelatin silver prints pasted onto board, in 1933. The muted, silvery tones feel melancholic and distant, like a memory half-forgotten. You can sense the artist's hand in the careful arrangement of the photos, each corner meticulously placed. I am drawn to the bottom right photo, the texture of the windmill blades against the bright sky; it is a simple scene, yet something about the composition feels quietly profound. I am reminded of Bernd and Hilla Becher’s photographic typologies of industrial structures, though here there's an added layer of personal narrative, like a family snapshot album turned into art. Ultimately, this work is about seeing – about how we frame our experiences, capture them, and then piece them together to make sense of the world around us.