Gezicht op gebouw in een bosrijke omgeving in El Boulaïda, Algerije before 1893

This photograph of El Boulaïda in Algeria was taken by Jules Gervais-Courtellemont, most likely using a glass plate camera. It's a documentary image, one intended to provide a sense of place. Yet, it is also something more. The image would have involved a labor-intensive, multi-step process, from the chemical preparation of the glass plate to the final print. Each of these steps would have required careful attention, skill, and technical knowledge. Consider, too, the amount of travel and physical exertion involved in capturing this image on location in Algeria. So while we can appreciate the final result for what it represents, it’s also important to remember that this image is the result of very specific means of production, imbued with labor and the wider social context of early photography, a technology that helped shape how the world was viewed and understood. It reminds us to expand our view of art history beyond the finished image, considering the work, skill, and social implications embedded in every photograph.