Ruïnes aan de Mauritsweg te Rotterdam c. 1940 - 1945

Editor: Here we have "Ruïnes aan de Mauritsweg te Rotterdam" – Ruins on Mauritsweg in Rotterdam – a gelatin-silver print taken by J. Nolte sometime between 1940 and 1945. The devastation captured is palpable; you can almost feel the weight of what happened. What do you see in this piece, considering it’s not just an image, but an object? Curator: It's crucial to look at this image through a materialist lens, examining the gelatin-silver print itself. Consider the socio-economic implications of photography during wartime: rationing of materials, the labor involved in developing these prints, and the consumption of these images as both historical record and propaganda. Notice how the artist uses photography, often considered a purely documentary medium, to almost romanticize ruin. How does the choice of gelatin-silver print affect our perception of this subject matter, knowing it has historical context? Editor: It makes you think about the act of documenting. Someone had to be there, choosing to capture this specific angle and moment. It shifts from a scene of complete despair to one with intent, right? Curator: Exactly. And intent always ties back to production and the material conditions. The gelatin-silver print allows for a specific tonal range, capturing textures and details that serve a particular narrative. We need to remember photography as industry—materials acquired, processes enacted. Who benefits from these images? How are they distributed and consumed? Answering those questions places the artwork within a broader web of socio-economic relationships. Editor: I never really thought about the 'who benefits' question when looking at something like this. I'm understanding how the creation of art is connected to social and economic structures more than I considered before. Curator: Precisely! By examining these ruins through a materialist lens, we unveil not just the devastation of war but also the networks of power and production that shaped its representation. It gives us something to chew on.