Stallen bij het Kasteel van Mheer 1890 - 1920

This beautiful old photograph, titled Stallen bij het Kasteel van Mheer, captures the stables at Mheer Castle. It's an anonymous work, probably commissioned by the Dutch Office for Monuments, likely to create a record. The sepia tones and soft focus create a nostalgic atmosphere. What I find intriguing is the way the light falls on the textured brickwork, especially around the ivy which creeps all over the side of the building. You can almost feel the rough surface of the brick and the delicate tracery of the leaves. It feels like a dream, almost a fantasy of a castle, maybe the sort of images that the surrealists, like Atget, or even later, someone like Bernd and Hilla Becher might have been interested in.