Portret van Miss Wallis before 1879

Curator: This is a photograph, likely a mixed-media print, of Miss Wallis, taken sometime before 1879 by Lock & Whitfield. The portrait is included as part of a publication about theatre. Editor: Yes, it's such a striking image. The sharp contrast makes her features so pronounced, and there's an accompanying text too, as if extracted from a book about theatre, as you say. What strikes me most is the way she seems to gaze just beyond us... almost as if anticipating a future performance. What do you see in this work, considering the era in which it was created? Curator: Absolutely. What's crucial here is the subject's profession. This image exists because Miss Wallis was a stage actress. And it was an era when the burgeoning middle class engaged in a form of social climbing, and theater and portrait photography provided that possibility. Miss Wallis could leverage photography of this kind to circulate images of herself and, thus, brand her public persona, which would drive ticket sales to her plays. In this light, the romantic gaze she casts appears more as a calculated projection than, necessarily, a soulful emotion. Considering this portrait was printed in "The Theatre," a theatrical magazine that was quite popular, what do you think of that idea? Editor: I never considered it that way before, as self-promotion! I tend to view the sitters in these portraits as, more or less, passive subjects. That certainly complicates the power dynamics I assumed were at play. It gives Miss Wallis more agency. So, this photo isn't just art for art's sake. Curator: Precisely! And that understanding transforms our entire perception of the image. It reminds us to consider whose stories are amplified, who benefits from that exposure, and how images function within broader power structures. Editor: This discussion has really shifted how I look at portraits from this era. I will try to remember the background forces, like gender and class, next time I look at these pictures!