Groepsportret van een Franse familie op een gazon in Rueil c. 1890 - 1900

E. Samson captured this group portrait of a French family with a camera, likely in the late 19th century. In this era, photography became more accessible, allowing the middle class to record and display their social status. The setting is a carefully chosen lawn in Rueil, a suburb of Paris, suggesting a connection to the emerging urban bourgeoisie, eager to enjoy the trappings of rural life. The family’s clothing, the children holding what appear to be fishing rods, and the way they are arranged, all work as symbols of social order. Photographs like these served as powerful tools for solidifying familial identity and projecting an image of respectability. To understand this image more fully, we can delve into archives of French photography, scrutinize fashion trends, and explore economic shifts that gave rise to the bourgeoisie in the suburbs of Paris. In doing so, we see how art becomes a mirror reflecting the values and aspirations of a particular society.