Gezicht op het huis Chalamala te Gruyère before 1896

Frédéric Boissonnas, a Swiss photographer, created this black and white photograph titled "Gezicht op het huis Chalamala te Gruyère." Boissonnas’s work documented landscapes and cultures, often reflecting the aesthetic values of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. His photographs are often rooted in a colonial gaze, capturing distant lands and peoples through the lens of a European perspective. This particular shot of a house invites us to consider the concept of 'home' and belonging. Who lived here? What was their daily life like? The photograph encourages us to think about the intersection of personal and public spaces and the dialogue between identity, architecture, and the environment. It captures a moment in time, preserving a glimpse into a specific place and its history, all while invoking a sense of distance and longing for a simpler, perhaps idealized, past.