Untitled c. 1850

Editor: Here we have an untitled, gelatin silver print from around 1850 by Charles Marville, held here at the Art Institute of Chicago. It's a really evocative landscape – I'm immediately drawn to the way the light reflects off the water. What can you tell me about this piece? Curator: This photograph exemplifies a pivotal moment in both art and urban history. Marville was later commissioned to document the radical transformation of Paris under Haussmann. Considering this earlier landscape, we see a yearning for a disappearing idyllic vision, contrasted with the looming forces of modernization and industrialization. Editor: So, it’s about more than just pretty scenery? Curator: Absolutely. Landscape photography in this period wasn't just about capturing nature. Think about the rise of the middle class and their increasing access to leisure. Parks and gardens become spaces of social mixing and performative display, visible also through painting and literature of that period. How might the *idea* of nature itself be evolving? Editor: Interesting. So, photography is reflecting and also shaping this evolving concept of nature, turning it into almost a consumer product? Curator: Precisely. It’s caught between documentation and idealization. We, the public, are actively helping determine how landscapes will look now and into the future. It also informs future public works of the French government that alter the use of water and landscape. How do you feel the sepia tones of the gelatin silver print add to this story? Editor: Well, it definitely enhances the romanticism. It adds this patina of the past. I never thought about photography’s role in defining our expectations for nature before. Curator: And how intertwined art can be with shaping cultural perspectives. A single image can contain layers of socio-political context. Editor: Right, I'll definitely look at landscapes differently now! Thanks!