[View of Mediterranean harbor] 1905

Curator: Jenny Lilienfeld's "View of Mediterranean Harbor," though undated, offers a fascinating glimpse into a bustling port. What strikes you first about it? Editor: The textures, definitely. You can almost smell the salt and tar just by looking at it. It's a world powered by physical labor, by hauling ropes and mending sails. Curator: Exactly! It's more than just a pretty picture. Lilienfeld really captures the grit and the energy of a working harbor, all those boats and ships and... Editor: And think about the materials: the wood, the canvas, the metal... each with its own story of extraction, production, and use. It also reminds us of shipping routes and the global economy of its time. Curator: A perfect point. It goes beyond just aesthetics to become something deeply resonant, like a memory pulled from the sea itself. Editor: Right, and that’s all there, embedded in the materiality of the image itself.