Untitled 1930

Piet Zwart made this photograph, with a camera, of course, and a real place, sometime in the twentieth century. Look at the repetition: stacks and stacks of wood planks receding into the distance, echoing the architecture of the factory itself. It's like a lesson in perspective, but also a meditation on mass production. The grayscale gives it a kind of timeless feel, like it could be from any era. There's a beautiful contrast between the rough texture of the wood and the smooth, industrial surfaces of the building. I'm drawn to the way the light filters in from above, casting shadows that create a sense of depth and mystery. It reminds me a little of the cool precision of Bernd and Hilla Becher's photographs of industrial structures. It's not just a record of a place, but a way of seeing the world, finding beauty in the everyday, and elevating the mundane to something poetic. It makes you think about the materials that surround us, where they come from, and the processes that transform them.