Blad 81 uit Stamboek van de leerlingen der Koloniale School voor Meisjes en Vrouwen te 's-Gravenhage deel II (1930-1949) Possibly 1936

This page comes from a student registry made in the Hague, Netherlands between 1930-1949. It's like a giant, analog spreadsheet, with the names, addresses, and birthdates of students recorded in looping, cursive handwriting. The whole thing is overlaid on a pre-printed grid. The handwriting, for me, is the most compelling thing. It's so variable, each signature a tiny, performative gesture. And next to each name is a photograph, so the page has these funny little tonal shifts as the photos fade and discolor. If you zoom in on the entry for "Jenne Mence Ledeboer", you can see how the ink pools in certain spots, almost like it's trying to escape the confines of the line. Each entry is like a little story, a ghost of a person rendered in ink and emulsion. You start to imagine the lives behind the photos, the ambitions and the anxieties of these young women. This reminds me of Moyra Davey's 'Mother and Daughters' series. Both are about memory and loss, and the way that time erodes the things we hold dear.