Lossen van de Soerabaja c. 1900 - 1922

This vintage photograph of the Lossen van de Soerabaja, by Robert Julius Boers, captures a ship amidst the sea's gentle unrest. It makes me think about how artists use tools to express the world around them, in this case photography. The image is doubled, like memory folding back on itself, showing us the ship twice, maybe to emphasize its journey or the repetitive nature of voyages. I imagine Boers carefully setting up his camera, trying to capture the essence of movement and the play of light on water. What was he thinking about as he framed this shot? Maybe he felt a connection to the ship, or maybe he was reflecting on the relationship between man and nature? Look at how the tones shift from light to dark, giving the sea its depth, those darker patches reminding me of the waves’ ebb and flow. Even in this stillness, there's a dynamic quality, a sense of the water always moving. It's this kind of interaction with the world that connects artists through time, each finding their own way to express these fundamental elements of life.