Donkey-drivers and Donkeys of Cairo c. 1880

Curator: Félix Bonfils created this albumen print, titled "Donkey-drivers and Donkeys of Cairo," sometime during his career. It projects such a quiet stillness. Editor: It does, doesn't it? But look closer. The photograph provides a potent snapshot into power dynamics and labor practices in Cairo at the time. Curator: Precisely. Bonfils, as a Western photographer, was participating in and reinforcing Orientalist tropes, framing Cairo through a colonial gaze. Editor: The image itself, with its staged arrangement of people and animals, echoes that agenda. We can see how the donkey drivers are positioned in relation to their means of livelihood. Curator: The lack of agency afforded to those being depicted is palpable; their identities flattened into types for Western consumption. Editor: Yet it's still a beautiful piece, forcing us to consider how aesthetic appeal can be intertwined with complex socio-political realities. Curator: And how art can be both a reflection of and a contributor to societal power structures. Editor: A reminder of the critical lens we need to employ.