Gezicht op het Koninklijk Paleis te Milaan 1857 - 1914

Editor: Here we have Giorgio Sommer's photograph, "Gezicht op het Koninklijk Paleis te Milaan," a gelatin silver print dating between 1857 and 1914. It gives such a feeling of grandness and history! I’m really drawn to the rigid geometry but also the detail on the palace's facade. How do you interpret this work? Curator: It's like stepping back in time, isn't it? Sommer's work here encapsulates a powerful blend of realism and idealized grandeur that was very popular at that time. I feel it in my bones! Think about what Milan represented in that period: a center of power, a crossroads of culture and aspirations of empire building. The use of long exposure, something only photography at that time could really capture, kind of underlines this permanence. Notice the placement of those columns - almost as if Sommer's making a statement of eternal power. What do you think that does to our understanding? Editor: That's interesting, it hadn't occurred to me that they served that purpose, or at least, were intended to signal power! I initially saw them more as compositional tools leading to the building. Curator: And they *are* compositional tools! That's not a "either/or" scenario; more like a "both/and" deal! They emphasize the grandeur, don’t you think? Plus, the softness of the silver gelatin print makes it almost dreamlike... Do you see any parallels with Neoclassical art here? Editor: I definitely see the Neoclassical elements now that you mention it, in the building's symmetry and the column design. The dreamlike quality of photography emphasizes the way the Neoclassical style looked back towards the ideal, and was never fully real! I originally approached the picture more literally, but the emotional feel, like looking into a half-remembered dream is strong now. Curator: Precisely! Art, like life, has its secrets and delights hiding in the details and contexts. Keep asking questions!