Dogenpaleis (Palazzo Ducale), Piazzetta, campanile en San Marco, Venetië c. 1880 - 1895

This albumen print, ‘Dogenpaleis (Palazzo Ducale), Piazzetta, campanile en San Marco, Venetië,’ was produced by Fratelli Alinari, in Venice, Italy. As a photographic print, its materiality reflects the convergence of chemistry, optics, and skilled labor. The albumen process, popular in the 19th century, involved coating paper with egg white to create a glossy surface, which was then sensitized to light. Consider the labor-intensive process behind this image, and the skill required to manipulate light and chemicals to produce a sharp, detailed view of Venice. This photograph represents the intersection of art, science, and commerce. Photography studios like Alinari operated as businesses, catering to tourists, and documenting art and architecture. The photograph, then, becomes an object of consumption, transforming the grandeur of Venice into a portable commodity. In appreciating this image, we recognize that photography, like other forms of making, carries its own social and economic context.