Standbeeld van Hendrik Tollens in het Park te Rotterdam before 1894

Editor: This photograph captures a sculpture of Hendrik Tollens, taken sometime before 1894 in a park in Rotterdam. It looks like it’s an image of the statue inside an open book. What visual language speaks to you when you look at it? Curator: Well, first, the book format itself tells a story. The image isn't presented in isolation; it's framed by the act of remembering, recording. It prompts us to ask: what was the cultural significance of Hendrik Tollens that merited such a monument? Why memorialize him in such a way, and then again, photograph that memory? Editor: So you’re looking at the layers of representation. Curator: Precisely. We see Tollens standing on a pedestal. What does a raised platform often symbolize? And beyond that, there are those iron fences—boundaries both physical and symbolic. Who are they meant to keep out? Is it only meant to preserve and venerate, or might it also represent societal structures? The pose is also suggestive—one hand tucked into his jacket, facing forward, not connecting, gazing towards a possibly unknown future. Editor: That's an interesting way to look at it – seeing not just the honour but a potential feeling of separation in this photographic encoding. Curator: Exactly. The question isn’t just who Tollens *was,* but what he *represents.* Consider what gets preserved, why, and by whom. Doesn’t that impact how we encounter the past, what cultural values linger, what stories endure? Editor: This makes me think more about how public sculptures impact cultural memory – more than just honoring but defining the collective identity. I’m definitely viewing this differently now!