Old Houses in Brittany 1913

Editor: Here we have Bror Julius Olsson Nordfeldt's "Old Houses in Brittany," created in 1913. It's an etching, a type of print, and the details are really striking. I'm immediately drawn to the everyday life captured, but also this slight sense of almost oppressive architecture looming overhead. What strikes you about this piece? Curator: The density of the buildings is fascinating. We see not just buildings, but a particular urban environment. Consider the timing: 1913. Across Europe and the United States, cities were in rapid transformation. Etchings like these helped document older urban fabrics, often imbued with nostalgia as those older cities faced pressures of modernization. Editor: That’s a great point, it does feel like it’s preserving something. Curator: Precisely. The etching itself – as a repeatable medium – is interesting. Was Nordfeldt intending to create art for the masses, allowing this image and perhaps its underlying message about urban change to disseminate widely? And what's being "sold," the scene, a way of life, or something else? The composition subtly frames this question. The architecture practically presses down on the street and the everyday human activities in it. It really asks: is progress a net gain, or is something being lost? Editor: So it's not just about capturing the scene, but about inviting a conversation about the effects of urban development at the time. Is it the role of the artist to document what is there now but maybe gone tomorrow? Curator: An artist’s role? An open debate that rages today! In 1913, there was burgeoning urban planning that helped usher in new building policies which influenced this very topic. How do such policies also affect art’s ability to influence its viewership, for better or for worse? Editor: That definitely gives me a new perspective on how to look at cityscapes of this era. Thanks! Curator: Indeed, seeing art as enmeshed with, rather than detached from, daily life gives rise to all sorts of readings.