Gezicht op rotsformatie Pleskin Head before 1867

This photogravure titled 'Gezicht op rotsformatie Pleskin Head' by John Hudson presents us with a dichotomy right at the book's centerfold. The stark contrast between the images on each page creates a visual tension. On the left, we see a faded, almost ghost-like rectangle, while the right side plunges us into the sharply defined verticality of a rock formation. The artist plays with the tonal range, guiding our eyes from the amorphous, light-filled void to the textured density of the Pleskin Head. The image destabilizes our expectations of photographic representation. The Pleskin Head evokes a sublime encounter with nature, a feeling of awe and perhaps even disorientation in the face of the earth’s geological power. This feeling is only heightened when juxtaposed with the blankness on the opposing page. Hudson is not merely documenting a landscape, but engaging with the philosophical implications of perception itself.