Onbekende jongen die zonder schoenen op een trap ligt before 1894

Curator: Here we have an intriguing gelatin-silver print from before 1894 by Joaquim Basto, entitled "Onbekende jongen die zonder schoenen op een trap ligt" or "Unknown boy lying shoeless on a staircase." Editor: My immediate reaction is one of quiet observation, a captured moment. The tonality is very soft, sepia-tinged; and this infuses a poignant calm, almost stillness to the image. Curator: Precisely. The setting is a streetscape with a building and rudimentary stairs leading up to it. Consider the socio-economic context. The boy's bare feet suggest poverty, yet he seems peaceful, perhaps even asleep with papers in his arms. The image likely points to the daily realities of working-class youth during that period and perhaps to issues of child labor and education. Editor: Yes, the bare feet create a certain texture within the larger tonal register and its contrasts – they direct the eye down into the corner, with their curve leading the attention back up the figure of the young man in repose. Curator: The photographic process itself, the gelatin-silver print, allowed for greater detail and tonal range, lending itself to capturing this form of street photography and portraying everyday scenes. The artist's choice to present it within what seems to be a book format elevates the status of the print as art, or as documentation worthy of collection. Editor: I find myself thinking about the way the composition uses the hard architectural lines of the stairs and wall. There’s a contrast here between this rough environment and the relaxed, almost classical pose of the boy. It reminds me somewhat of Pre-Raphaelite painting, a modern subject rendered with an air of artifice. Curator: Perhaps. And Basto seems to have also considered presentation with intent, as this would influence how audiences consume photography in his time. His choice of medium speaks to an interest in wider reach of his commentary about work, life, and society. Editor: Ultimately, for me it’s a deeply resonant image that blends reportage with an underlying artistic sensibility and aesthetic balance in shape, shadow, and light. Curator: It is, when considering material and setting, an image meant to remind its viewers of society, labor, and perhaps themselves.