Twee jongens, vermoedelijk Hans en Georges Bergsma op Sumatra 1926

This photograph of two boys, probably Hans and Georges Bergsma, was taken in Sumatra in April 1926. It's anonymous. I love that. Makes it feel sort of universal, don't you think? It has this faded, sepia quality, like a half-remembered dream. Look closely, and you can see the texture of the paper, feel its age. The light is soft, almost blurring the details, so the boys seem to emerge from the background. The older one has darker clothing, while the younger one is more softly rendered in the light. There's a melancholic mood about it, but in a gentle way. You can almost feel the humidity of the Sumatran air, and hear the quiet sounds of the jungle nearby. It reminds me a little of the early work of Gerhard Richter, where he used old photographs as the basis for blurred, hazy paintings, playing with memory and loss. Art is like an ongoing conversation, isn't it? Always echoing and responding to what came before.