Interieur met schoorsteen in de gevangenis op de Prinsegracht te Den Haag before 1908

This photograph shows a room with a fireplace, taken at the prison on the Prinsegracht in The Hague around 1908. It's anonymous, by the department of national heritage. Isn’t it fascinating how an image can capture so many layers of meaning, even without a known author? The composition is dominated by the fireplace, its ornate carvings softened by the monochrome palette. The wallpaper is busy, patterned and the room is spare. The texture of the photograph itself, with its slight graininess, adds another layer, reminding us of the physical process of capturing this moment in time. Look at the swirls and curves in the woodwork of the mantelpiece – they almost seem to be trying to escape the rigidity of the architectural lines. This image makes me think of Eugène Atget, who obsessively photographed Parisian architecture at the turn of the century. Both Atget and our anonymous photographer share an interest in the poetics of the everyday, finding beauty in the mundane and overlooked. Art isn't always about grand gestures; sometimes, it's about noticing the quiet details that make up our world.