Doopvont in een kerk te Gendringen 1890 - 1920

This monochrome photograph captures a baptismal font in a church in Gendringen. I like the composition of the photograph and the off-white tonality. It’s like a painting in itself. You know, when you're faced with a subject like this, steeped in history and tradition, you start to think about the materials and how they speak to the viewer. Stone is such a tactile material. I imagine the stonemason, whose name has been lost to time, chipping away, feeling the weight and the texture of the stone, figuring out what's underneath. They’re trying to realize something, a shape in their mind, but the stone has its own ideas, too. I’m thinking that the artist would be in conversation with the medium, pushing and pulling, until this solid form appears. I imagine them considering how to communicate not just the object's function, but also a sense of reverence, too. The marks and decisions of the artist reveal an idea and its construction and reconstruction through time. The way the light falls, the subtle gradations, all contribute to the emotional resonance of the piece. It shows how artists are constantly in dialogue, sharing ideas and pushing the boundaries of what's possible.