Overstroming in Nieuwkuijk 1880 - 1881

Curator: Right now we are looking at "Overstroming in Nieuwkuijk" or "Flooding in Nieuwkuijk," a photograph taken between 1880 and 1881 by Albert Greiner, using the gelatin silver print technique. It resides here at the Rijksmuseum. Editor: There's a stillness here, isn’t there? A sort of…acceptance. Despite what must have been chaos and displacement, the composition is so tranquil, almost meditative. The muted tones really amplify that. Curator: Precisely. Note the way Greiner uses reflections in the floodwater. It almost feels as though he is presenting a mirror to the vulnerability of this Dutch town. The reflections duplicate and thereby emphasise the disruption to daily life. Editor: Water, symbolically, often represents purification but also chaos. In this image, I think the balance tips towards chaos. The homes, usually symbols of safety and belonging, are literally undermined, their foundations submerged. Do you get a feeling that this symbolizes helplessness? Curator: Yes. There's a powerlessness to the scene. The flooded village is not some grand spectacle but the antithesis. Editor: And in that, there's a universality. Floods and other disasters continue to challenge our sense of safety and belonging. It is as much about our relationship with nature as it is about a specific historical moment. Curator: It prompts us to reflect on our own resilience, doesn't it? Perhaps it underscores that even in moments of destruction, memory and maybe, with it, some essence of place will still be mirrored in new waters. Editor: So in effect, the image is not simply about the literal flood, but the enduring spirit reflected within it, an iconography for displacement and yet still for memory. Very compelling work.