Haagwinde in bloei c. 1900 - 1930

Richard Tepe made this photograph of bindweed in bloom, somewhere, sometime. Just try to imagine it – the darkroom, the chemicals, the plates, and the alchemical magic of light transforming into image. I wonder what Tepe was thinking about as he composed this shot. Was he drawn to the delicate balance between light and shadow, the way the leaves seem to dance in a gentle breeze? Or was he simply captivated by the pure, ethereal beauty of the flowers themselves? I’m looking at the way the soft sepia tones create a sense of timelessness, like a memory fading at the edges. It reminds me a little of the work of folks like Karl Blossfeldt, capturing natural forms with such incredible detail. When I look at this photograph, I feel a sense of peace, a connection to something larger than myself. And isn’t that what art is all about? Showing us new ways of seeing, of feeling, of being in the world.