The Open Door 1843 - 1844

"The Open Door" is a calotype photograph created by William Henry Fox Talbot in 1843-1844. The image, now housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, depicts a simple scene of a doorway with a broom resting on the threshold. Talbot, a pioneer in photography, used the calotype process, a method he invented, to capture this intimate and everyday moment, highlighting the potential of photography to document the ordinary and create a sense of realism. The soft focus and subtle tonal range of the calotype process contribute to the evocative and atmospheric quality of the image, inviting viewers to contemplate the scene and its potential story.