Schepen in een dok van de Tanjong Pagar Dock Co. Ltd. in Singapore met eromheen personeel before 1905

This photograph, "Ships in a dock of the Tanjong Pagar Dock Co. Ltd. in Singapore with staff around it," was made by G.R. Lambert & Co. The image captures a moment, or rather, a process. It's as if we're seeing time itself being developed in the darkroom. There's a tactile quality to it, even though it's a photograph, almost like you could run your fingers over the surface. The texture of the ship's hull, the way the figures seem to blur into a crowd – it's a symphony of tones and forms. Look at the masts reaching up. They remind me of Agnes Martin's grids, a structure that contains a multitude. This photograph makes me think of the ongoing conversation between representation and abstraction. The way that photography can fix something, but the world keeps moving.