Windhond before 1888

Curator: We're looking at an albumen print titled "Windhond," created before 1888 by an anonymous artist. It's presented within what appears to be a bound album. Editor: My first impression? This image evokes such quiet dignity! The dog has this sort of gentle, knowing gaze. A real aristocratic hound, posed with simple grace and printed in monochrome with care. Curator: Albumen prints were quite labor-intensive, involving coating paper with egg white to create a smooth surface for the photographic emulsion. Its very production speaks to a certain dedication to craft. Editor: The texture really does jump out! The detail captured in its fur, the way the light interacts with the fibers...it's gorgeous! Almost like you can run your fingers across it. Is it a portrait, though, when we are unsure who took it or whether it had commissioned value for it’s owner? Curator: That’s part of what intrigues me, too, regarding this particular print; in this period photographic production exploded; to consider where the lines of value for it are is hard. Was its existence aesthetic, technological or economical, we are left guessing! Editor: Right, who created it? Is it a technical masterclass to celebrate albumen? It's a portal through which the humanity comes rushing; that hound has some wisdom locked away! Maybe the labor involved creates more value for it than its commissioning might! Curator: Possibly. It does lead to reflection on the intersection of artistic intent, historical context, and the tangible properties of the final artwork in the labor value. I also find myself questioning what constitutes "realism," or a "portrait" during this time, as categories. Editor: It just shows how that gorgeous material and how that beautiful hound has provoked this dialogue; such a joy! Curator: Precisely; looking at something that embodies the history of photography invites interesting inquiry.