Abdijkerk van Saint-Ouen in Rouen 1870 - 1900

Editor: So, this print, “Abdijkerk van Saint-Ouen in Rouen”, was captured sometime between 1870 and 1900 by Étienne Neurdein, using a collotype. It’s just… breathtaking! The sheer scale of the cathedral is incredible. All that intricate gothic detail. What really strikes me is how…stark and monumental it feels. What do you see in it? Curator: Oh, absolutely. It practically shouts, doesn't it? For me, beyond the impressive architectural record, I feel a whisper of the past. Imagine the faith, the ambition, the sheer human will it took to raise something like this. Consider the collotype itself – light-sensitive gelatin, trapping an instant of light and shadow. Does it strike you how Neurdein uses the light? Editor: I hadn't really thought about the light... Curator: Notice how the stone seems to drink in the sunlight, yet somehow retain a cool reserve? I wonder if he was aiming to portray not just the church but the feeling of the church - its sacredness, the hush within its walls, even when bathed in light. Editor: It's almost as if it’s alive and breathing… Curator: Precisely! It's a silent scream of faith and history. It certainly invites you to question what kind of belief system would provoke its construction, and why record this place using this unique technique. Does any specific aspect really grab your focus? Editor: It's the sheer intricacy and grandeur. I can’t imagine designing and constructing this, knowing there were limitations due to material challenges and that this image still stands to this day. Thank you for a deeper dive, I had a different appreciation of its impact after our chat. Curator: Indeed! These images open the aperture of understanding wider each time. Every glance, a fresh breath into a silent story.