Portret van een staande vrouw 1860 - 1900

This portrait of a standing woman was made by Fafournoux & Gantier, using the 19th-century photographic process of the Carte de Visite. It’s a paper print from a glass negative. The Carte de Visite was a clever innovation, part of the emerging culture of mass production and consumption. A photographer could make multiple prints from a single negative, dramatically reducing the cost. Suddenly, it became affordable for ordinary people to have their portraits taken. This fueled a craze for collecting and trading these cards, much like baseball cards today. Consider the social context of this image. Photography democratized portraiture, previously reserved for the wealthy. The rise of photography studios also created new jobs, though often with exploitative labor practices. These images, made with light and chemistry, offer a fascinating glimpse into a world rapidly changing due to technology and industry. By looking at this image, we can consider the complex ways in which art and everyday life intersect.