Gezicht op de Hampoort te Grave 1890 - 1920

This anonymous photo, "Gezicht op de Hampoort te Grave", shows a building across the water. There is a beautiful simplicity in its execution, or maybe I should say, in the result of its execution. The image is almost entirely monochrome, and the eye is drawn to the contrast of the building against the landscape. The surfaces capture the texture so well, the rough and worn facades of the buildings and the calm surface of the water. See how the photographer has captured the texture of the stonework, drawing the viewer's eye to every nook and cranny. There is something of the Bechers about this image, with its objective recording of an ordinary building. In a way, it's like life drawing, but with buildings. It is a lovely piece, and of course like any great work of art, it tells us as much about the artist as its subject.