Verfrissing in het zwembad Possibly 1942 - 1948

This black and white photograph by Fotopersbureau Stevens captures people in a crowded outdoor swimming pool area. Imagine the photographer looking for the right spot to capture a sense of the energy of the crowd. I wonder what it felt like to be there and what it was like to take this photograph. The light gives a sense of the heat, the reason for the crowd to flock to the pool in the first place. The scene reminds me of painters like David Hockney, who captured the energy and the feeling of swimming pools in his paintings. There’s a conversation happening between the people depicted here and the viewer as they look at the image. Artists often engage in that kind of dialogue across time, inspiring one another's creativity. Ultimately, this photograph is a form of embodied expression that embraces ambiguity, allowing for multiple interpretations and meaning.