Bosje weegbreezonnebloemen c. 1900 - 1930

Richard Tepe made this photograph of a bunch of sunflowers in a vase, somewhere in the late 19th or early 20th century. I bet he spent hours in his studio, arranging and rearranging the flowers just so. Think about the light in the studio as he moved the sunflowers around. Some flowers lean forward, inviting you in, while others shyly turn away. The light creates a sense of depth, like you could reach right into the image and pluck a flower. What was Tepe thinking when he took this shot? Was he trying to capture the fleeting beauty of nature, or maybe just experimenting with the technology of photography? Maybe he wanted to leave a legacy of beauty, to show future generations what it felt like to be alive in his time. Photography, like painting, is about freezing a moment in time, capturing a feeling, and sharing it with the world.