After weeks of weary fighting for the fateful Menin road, the victors and the vanguished both happy 1914 - 1918

This tiny black and white photograph by Realistic Travels shows us the victors of the Menin Road. I wonder what it felt like to take this photo, and to make a record of that moment. You can see the faces of the soldiers, some sitting, some standing, some with hats, some without. I can feel the weight of being at war, and also the relief of winning. Did the photographer have an idea in mind? Did he have a script? The tonal range is very condensed, so it's all middling grays. It's hard to make out the details. There are a lot of people in the picture, and it's hard to focus on any one of them, I find myself imagining what it would be like to be one of these people at this time. It’s a document of a particular moment, a specific kind of record-keeping, and the details really bring it to life. It reminds me of some of Gerhard Richter's photo paintings where the texture is suppressed in order to let the image come through, albeit with a heavy heart.