Habiti antichi, et moderni di tutto il mondo : di nuovo accresciuti di molte figure : vestitus antiquorum, recentiorumque totius orbis 1598

Editor: Here we have Christoph Krieger's "Habiti antichi, et moderni di tutto il mondo", an engraving from 1598. It's the title page to a book illustrating historical and contemporary clothing styles. It looks rather austere and academic. What strikes you about this print? Curator: What I find compelling is its encapsulation of a specific moment in the history of knowledge and cultural exchange. Krieger's project reflects a growing European fascination with documenting and classifying the world, very much linked to early forms of colonialism and trade. What kind of power do you think these images have? Editor: I suppose it’s a way to catalog the world, almost to possess it visually through these representations. Are these images accurate? Curator: Accuracy is an interesting word here. These aren't photographs, they're interpretations filtered through Krieger's cultural lens and the expectations of his audience. They speak to how Europeans at the time *perceived* different cultures, and the assumptions they carried with them. Do you see any evidence of these assumptions in the images or the page design itself? Editor: Perhaps the idealised figures flanking the text? And that slightly romantic crest in the centre. They add a sense of European refinement to what is meant to be an objective survey. Curator: Exactly! These visual cues positioned European culture as a standard, consciously or unconsciously. And that affects how its viewers perceived the non-European world then, and indeed, continue to see the world now. It highlights the importance of unpacking the cultural politics embedded in even seemingly straightforward documentary images. Editor: I never really considered that title pages could be so rich with cultural information. I’ll definitely be looking at these works differently. Curator: And that's the value in studying them! Every image tells a story, and we need to learn to listen critically to those stories.