Contractarbeiders op een koffieplantage op Sumatra 1891 - 1912

This photograph, "Contract Laborers on a Coffee Plantation in Sumatra," was taken by Christiaan Benjamin Nieuwenhuis sometime in the late 19th or early 20th century. It has this sepia wash, which feels like a memory, a process of layering time itself. What strikes me is the way the light almost blurs the figures, the laborers themselves, making them a part of the landscape. It’s as if Nieuwenhuis is showing us not just a scene, but the very weight of labor on the land. The way the leaves and fronds of the trees are articulated in the background, is set in contrast to the figures and structures. It reminds me of some of the early documentary photography, people like Jacob Riis, who were also trying to capture the human condition in specific historical moments. Art is always talking to other art, right? It's all one big, messy conversation.