Poort te Peking before 1920

Editor: So here we have Donald Mennie’s “Poort te Peking”, a gelatin-silver print from before 1920. There’s something about the light here, framing figures passing through this gate. I wonder, what grabs you most when you look at this image? Curator: Ah, Mennie. It feels like a stolen glance, doesn't it? Like we’re not meant to be privy to this intimate moment in bustling Peking. That archway… it’s a threshold, a portal through time, really. I’m thinking of old film reels, documentaries, those ghosts we see flitting through history. The donkey, so loaded down, almost mirroring the weight of history itself. What does it make *you* feel? Editor: I agree, that contrast is very powerful! It’s also making me consider my perspective; as a Western viewer, there is definitely some orientalism going on in my reading of it, particularly the sort of anonymous presentation of the subjects. Is that fair? Curator: That’s a very important question! I'd argue the composition pulls us away from some kind of inherent othering and towards a more empathetic read; think of that archway framing everything. A window through time is a bridge. Even the technical choices—the hazy background, the subdued tones—add to the feeling of intimacy and introspection. I find myself thinking of Atget capturing the soul of old Paris. There's this gentle melancholy... almost dreamlike, isn’t it? Editor: Yes, I see what you mean. I am now seeing past that more generic vision of "old China" I initially perceived! Curator: It invites us to look closer, to feel something of that history ourselves. Thank you for taking a look, I loved discovering something new about this artwork with you.