Vrouwen en kinderen spelen met tollen in Zemenon before 1910

Frédéric Boissonnas made this black and white photograph, ‘Vrouwen en kinderen spelen met tollen in Zemenon,’ at an unknown date. It’s a small image, only 100 by 149 mm, printed on a page in a book. It’s interesting how, without the colors, your eye is drawn to the tones and the shadows. The light is so important. Look at the way the light falls across the landscape, creating depth and texture. The people seem to be defined by the sun as it hits them. The ground appears dry and uneven as the sun shines on it. There’s a sense of timelessness to this image, a snapshot of a world where people are still connected to their environment. I like that the process feels concealed here, like a fly-on-the-wall documentary. Photography is a conversation with painting – an ongoing dialogue about realism, abstraction, and the ways we see the world. It reminds me of some of the work of Eugène Atget, who was able to capture the beauty and mystery of everyday life.