Aanleg van de weg langs een heuvel 1903 - 1913

Curator: The stark, almost brutal, verticality of the cut hillside! It gives the whole scene a feeling of… imposition, of humanity asserting itself over the land. Editor: That’s a great way to put it. This photograph, “Aanleg van de weg langs een heuvel,” which translates to “Construction of the Road Along a Hill,” captures a scene likely from the early 20th century. We can date it approximately between 1903 and 1913. The photographer, known only to us as Anonymous, offers a compelling glimpse into this era's infrastructural endeavors. Curator: The figures, though small in the frame, feel significant. Mounted, burdened – they suggest labor, progress. There's also the felled log, quite prominent. It’s such a primal image – the tree, sacrificed for the road. It feels loaded. Editor: Yes, it's hard to ignore the visual weight of that log! And note the shadows that play across the road’s surface – it directs our eye straight to the people at the photograph's center, doesn't it? From a historical perspective, these types of infrastructure projects were crucial for resource extraction and extending governmental control, so while seemingly neutral, the photo captures political realities. Curator: Precisely. It’s more than just a road. Roads connect – but also control. I find the lack of faces on the figures is significant too, as though these people aren’t specific but serve as a reminder of those doing such hard labor and paving a path into modernity. The horsemen stand in the center. Like supervisors, or people in charge. Editor: That interpretation is apt. By obscuring their faces, the photographer elevates the everyday. And from that distance it is difficult to fully determine the meaning and context behind these persons. One thing for sure is how impressive such infrastructure feats could be – and their direct links to modernity, politics and economics, all at play together in the single photograph. Curator: So true. The symbolism is more nuanced when considered with all of the factors. Thanks for laying it out that way! Editor: My pleasure! This image encourages consideration of those dynamics and our place within their continuous cycles.