Familie en vrienden 1941 - 1942

This is a photo album page called "Familie en Vrienden" from an unknown date, made by an anonymous artist. It's all about the careful arrangement, the coming together of images as a process of meaning making. Look at the texture of the album's pages, its grey card is a sturdy support for these delicate memories. The smaller photos, each with their unique silver gelatin sheen, are like individual brushstrokes, coming together to make a whole. Each photo is a little world of its own, but together, they tell a bigger story. Notice the portraits at the bottom. The slightly different poses and expressions could be a double exposure, as if the photographer were trying to capture every aspect of this person in a single moment. It reminds me of David Hockney's photo collages. Both artists show us that seeing isn't a single snapshot, but a process of collecting fragments. What does the relationship of all the fragments mean to you?