Else Wachenheimer-Moos loopt met haar echtgenoot Eugen Wachenheimer over de pier van Scheveningen, 1924, Scheveningen 1924

Here’s a photo taken in 1924 on a pier in Scheveningen by an anonymous photographer. It’s monochrome, with a lovely tonal range. I look at this and imagine the artist, whoever they were, standing there, holding their camera steady. They’re capturing a moment, but it’s also kind of constructed, right? Like a little scene from a play. The couple is strolling, and you know, their clothes, the way they stand, it’s all part of the performance. The surface of the pier leads us into the distance, and it feels like a stage. The background fades into the ocean horizon. I wonder, were they aware of the photographer? Did they pose, or were they caught in a candid moment? There is an openness and ambiguity which offers multiple interpretations, allowing meaning to change over time, which is so exciting.