Vaas van Gustave Doré op de Wereldtentoonstelling van 1878 1878

Adolphe Block created this stereo card in 1878, capturing Gustave Doré's vase at the World Exhibition in Paris. World Exhibitions were mega-events intended to promote national prestige and international cooperation through displays of technological innovation, industrial production, and artistic achievement. Doré’s monumental vase, rendered in bronze, was intended to reflect the optimism of the era and the grandeur of French artistic accomplishment. Stereo cards were a popular form of entertainment at the time, offering a sense of depth and realism to viewers through a specially designed viewer. Block’s choice to document Doré’s vase in this format suggests an effort to democratize access to high art, making it available to a broader audience beyond the elite circles who might typically engage with such works. To fully understand the cultural and social context, one might consult exhibition catalogs, contemporary reviews, and studies of the industrial arts in 19th-century France. These resources help us understand the complex web of cultural forces that shaped artistic production and reception.