Monument voor Brigham Young en de tempel van de Heiligen der Laatste Dagen, Salt Lake City 1924 - 1926

This double image by J. Dearden Holmes captures the Pioneer Monument and Mormon Temple in Salt Lake City. It’s like a sepia dream, a faded memory, constructed through the lens of a camera, so already mediated. Look at the surface quality – the way the light seems to soften every edge, blurring the distinction between the monument and the temple behind it. It’s hard to tell what kind of paper this was printed on. You can almost feel the artist’s hand in the darkroom, carefully adjusting the tones to create this particular mood. And that monument, with the figure of Brigham Young pointing into the distance - what's he thinking? Is he proud, or just tired? It reminds me of Edward Steichen's photographs from the early 20th century, which had a similar aesthetic and focus on historical and cultural themes. But maybe this one is more about what we choose to remember, and how those choices shape our understanding of the world.