A Whiff of the Opium Pipe at Home; After Dinner; Reading for Honours; The Toilet c. 1868

John Thomson created this photographic print, "A Whiff of the Opium Pipe at Home; After Dinner; Reading for Honours; The Toilet", during his travels in China in the 1870s. These images offer a glimpse into the domestic lives of upper-class Chinese citizens, but they are also a product of the complex power dynamics between East and West during a period of colonial expansion. Thomson's lens captures intimate moments – a man smoking opium, a family relaxing after dinner, women attending to their toilette. Yet, these scenes are framed by the gaze of a Western photographer, inevitably shaping how they were, and are, perceived. How do these images reinforce or challenge existing stereotypes about Chinese culture? What stories do they tell, and perhaps, what stories do they omit? These photographs invite us to consider the ethics of representation, the cultural biases inherent in the photographic medium, and the complex interplay between observer and observed. They remind us that every image is not merely a reflection of reality, but a carefully constructed narrative, deeply influenced by the photographer's perspective and the historical context in which it was created.