Gezicht op Southwark Bridge over de Theems in Londen before 1867

This is Francis Frith’s photographic print of ‘Gezicht op Southwark Bridge over de Theems in Londen.’ Frith was one of the first English photographers to establish a large-scale commercial studio. This image captures London during a period of rapid industrialization and urbanization. The Southwark Bridge, completed in 1819, symbolizes the modernization of the city’s infrastructure. The image encapsulates the 19th-century fascination with progress and engineering marvels but it also hints at the social and economic changes affecting Londoners. Frith’s choice to document this bridge can be seen as a reflection of Victorian values and interests of the rising middle class, who were eager to see and understand the changing landscape of their world. This image invites us to consider the narratives of progress and modernity, and the complex relationship between industrial advancement and social experience.