Koningin Wilhelmina en prins Hendrik in de gouden koets op het Rokin, Amsterdam 1901

Barend Groote made this photograph of Queen Wilhelmina and Prince Hendrik in the golden carriage on the Rokin in Amsterdam. This image is teeming with people crammed together like paint on a palette. The monochromatic tones create a sense of nostalgia. I think about the idea of documenting a fleeting moment, like trying to capture a feeling. Groote doesn't obscure his process at all. The sharpness in the foreground fades to a blur, like memory itself. Look at how the crowd surges, a sea of faces becoming one. It reminds me of a passage in Proust, where a scent triggers a cascade of memories. Here, the light on the water, the architecture looming in the background, it all comes together. It’s the kind of photograph that makes you feel like you were there. This work feels like it's in dialogue with someone like Eugène Atget, who was also capturing the changing face of city life. It's like they’re both asking: how do we hold onto a moment before it disappears?