Zuidzijde Grote of Sint-Stephanuskerk te Hasselt 1904

This sepia photograph of the Sint-Stephanuskerk in Hasselt, was shot by an anonymous photographer sometime in the late 19th, early 20th century. It’s a study in contrasts, actually. The geometric lines of the architecture, those sharp angles and calculated curves, set against the wild, untamed foliage that seems to be staging a takeover. You can almost feel the sun-baked stone and smell the damp earth, can’t you? I’m drawn to the way the details emerge from the shadows. The windows of the church, for instance, are so sharp and clear. It makes me think of the way a painter might use a limited palette to say so much. Think of someone like Gerhard Richter, working with greys to create these subtle gradations and shifts in tone. Here, the anonymous photographer makes the image vibrate through dark and light. It’s all about suggestion, about leaving room for the viewer to fill in the blanks.