Algemeen Handelsblad Possibly 1939

Editor: Here we have "Algemeen Handelsblad," dated possibly 1939, a print that functions as a newspaper. It's really striking how the designers have used the full space of the layout. It feels incredibly urgent, almost chaotic. What do you see in this piece, especially given its historical context? Curator: From a materialist perspective, it's important to consider the very means of its production. This isn't some timeless painting; it's a newspaper, a disposable object designed for immediate consumption and distribution. What specific materiality went into printing? Editor: Good point. I notice the different font sizes and weights; there must have been specific processes to arrange the typeface like that, and someone had to physically set that typeface before the mechanical process of printing could occur. It's such an intentional and crafted item produced on a possibly large scale. Curator: Precisely. The choices of typeface, the layout itself, are not neutral. They actively construct a narrative. Given the looming threat of war in 1939, this paper reflects a society on edge, reliant on mass-produced information, even as these things tend to misrepresent what happens. The availability of cheap materials like newsprint makes such widespread distribution possible, right? Editor: That’s true. It also affects the content because these news outlets could deliver particular narratives on a broad basis. Curator: Exactly! What assumptions are being made, and who benefits from their distribution? In examining its materiality, we see the means through which social power operates, right up to our own interaction with its digitized copy. Editor: Absolutely, understanding the labour behind such mass-produced media makes you think twice about it being "just a newspaper".