Groep jonge mensen in de wijk Oud-Antwerpen, op de Wereldtentoonstelling van 1894 in Antwerpen, België Possibly 1894 - 1895

This sepia photograph captures a tableau of young people in old Antwerp at the World Exhibition of 1894. Its production involved both the photographer and the printing press to mass produce the image for distribution, marking a shift in the way images were made available to the masses. The photograph's sepia tone gives it an antique feel, as though this modern technology is reaching back in time. The photograph freezes a moment, but it also participates in a larger economic exchange. Serving as a souvenir of the World Exhibition, it would have been acquired and taken home, perhaps pasted into a scrapbook. The very act of photography democratizes the production of images, but also creates an economy around the staged authenticity of the old city. It asks us to consider the relationship between labor, representation, and the ways in which cultural heritage can become a commodity. So, let's think about how the image connects to the culture of making that was on display at the World's Fair.