Gezicht op de Hlangwane heuvel waar de slag van Colenso in 1899 plaatsvond 1901

Editor: This is a gelatin-silver print stereograph from 1901, "Gezicht op de Hlangwane heuvel waar de slag van Colenso in 1899 plaatsvond" by Underwood & Underwood. The subdued tones give it a somber feeling. What's striking to me is how this seemingly barren landscape became a site of conflict. How do you read this image? Curator: For me, the key to understanding this image lies in understanding its production and distribution as a stereograph. These images were mass-produced for a burgeoning consumer market eager for visual representations of faraway places and events. Consider the labor involved: from photographers on location documenting the aftermath of the battle to the factory workers churning out these cards by the thousands. What story does that process tell about early 20th-century media and consumption? Editor: So you're focusing on the industry behind the image, more than the battle itself? Curator: Precisely! The landscape becomes a raw material, commodified and distributed for profit. We need to consider the economic structures that allow for this type of image-making and distribution, and who benefits. How did this image shape public understanding of the Boer War at the time? Editor: I hadn’t really considered the impact of the photograph being mass-produced on how it was perceived back then. Curator: It speaks to the accessibility of knowledge production and consumption at that time, framing a critical point about the medium. Thinking about the labor and distribution opens new perspectives on what a landscape photograph can mean. Editor: Right. Instead of just seeing the photograph of a place, we see the industry, and the social context that made its creation and distribution possible. Thank you for pointing that out!