Portret van koning Léopold I van België before 1865

This portrait of King Leopold I of Belgium was created by Ghémar Frères using photography, a relatively new medium at the time. Considered a marvel of the industrial age, photography democratized image-making, liberating it from the slow craft of painting. Here, the tonal gradations, the texture of Leopold's uniform, and even the subtle blemishes on the print, speak to the unique material qualities of early photographic processes. The image has a formal, almost clinical quality, which results from the mechanics of photography and the sitter's need to remain still. Yet, the very act of capturing the King's likeness through this new technology underscores photography's ability to capture not just an image, but also a moment in time, a shift in the social and cultural landscape. Photography's rise was directly linked to the growth of industrial capitalism, offering new possibilities for documentation, dissemination, and, of course, portraiture. By attending to the material and historical context of this photograph, we can appreciate its significance beyond simply a representation of royalty, it captures a pivotal point in the history of both art and industry.