Vier portretten van Herman Besselaar en twee portretten van een kennis c. 1930

Curator: Welcome! Today we’re looking at an albumen print dating to around 1930. It’s titled “Vier portretten van Herman Besselaar en twee portretten van een kennis,” which translates to “Four portraits of Herman Besselaar and two portraits of an acquaintance.” Editor: It’s a page from a photo album, isn’t it? I find the sepia tones so evocative of the era… that feeling of lives partially lost to time, framed within these very ordered rectangular borders and photo corners. There's something ghostly in how memory is presented here. Curator: Yes, the composition is fascinating. There's the contrast between the different subjects within the frame; each portrait possesses a distinct pictorial setting which makes each visually independent. We can compare, for instance, the more formal image of Herman posed in front of what seems to be a brick facade versus a casual shot of him seated on a ledge. It’s compelling, a juxtaposition of self-presentations. Editor: Definitely, these diverse depictions point towards the multifaceted identity of an individual—showing, perhaps, different roles and relationships Hermann occupied within his social sphere. Who was this "acquaintance," though? How do we frame the relation between them? Curator: We may never know. In any event, each frame creates visual rhythm through contrast of subject and architectural forms. Take the portrait with three uniformed men posing together outdoors. We have the horizontality of the field meeting the vertical thrust of their postures. The variety keeps the eye engaged across the surface of the whole album page. Editor: The album feels inherently queer. I get the sense of looking at lost possibilities through Hermann’s carefully created performance of masculinity through coded poses for the camera—those friends in uniform, his careful style of dress. This photographic gathering feels like a covert archive of love and self-fashioning, or at least intimacy under duress. Curator: An intriguing perspective. Either way, one takeaway remains constant. Berti Hoppe has crafted a narrative that encapsulates human stories—the desire for connection, documentation, and even control over a visual representation of ourselves, the passage of time—through deceptively simple forms and tones. Editor: It’s a potent reminder that photographic images, seemingly objective, are often subjective. This humble photo page invites deeper thought concerning visibility and recognition, or simply who gets remembered, and how.