Mannen zittend op een hek voor de Oostpoort en Oostpoortbrug te Delft 1900 - 1920

G. Hidderley captured this sepia toned photograph of men sitting on a fence in Delft. The fuzzy, dreamlike quality of this image, the softness of the focus, makes me think of time slipping and sliding. The men are captured from behind, their dark coats blending into one continuous form, their heads like little punctuation marks. A wonderful rhythm is created by the positioning of the men, an almost musical notation describing their postures and attitudes. This rhythm creates a strange kind of flatness, almost like a frieze. Look at the way the surface of the water shimmers. It’s built up of thousands of tiny, almost invisible marks. The way they catch the light reminds me of pointillism, a technique that uses tiny dots of colour to create an image. This photo creates a similar effect, but with light and shadow. This photograph reminds me of the work of Atget, who also captured scenes of everyday life with such grace and sensitivity. It's a reminder that art is all about looking, thinking, and feeling, and not necessarily about having all the answers.