Reliëf van de Borobudur (Boroboedoer), nabij Magelang, Nederlands-Indië c. 1895 - 1915

This photograph by Onnes Kurkdjian captures a relief from Borobudur near Magelang in the Dutch East Indies. Imagine the artist there with his camera, looking up, framing the ancient carving just so. I love how photography can freeze a moment, but also how it invites us to consider time. This relief is deeply textural and detailed, and I wonder what it was like to work on such a big scale? What were the tools, the physical demands, and the creative choices involved in bringing these figures to life? The way the light plays across the surface must have been a guide, as well as an inspiration. It’s like the artist was carving into time itself, and Kurkdjian documented this. Each mark tells a story, a narrative unfolding that we can only glimpse, reminding us that art is not just about what we see, but about the stories we imagine.