The Street called Straight, Damascus 24 - 1856

Curator: James Graham took this photograph titled "The Street Called Straight, Damascus" between 1854 and 1856. Editor: My initial impression is one of faded grandeur and perhaps a certain disquiet. The rough stone frame dominates the view, as if peering into another era. It has clearly weathered both conflict and time. Curator: It's crucial to remember the context here. Graham, a British photographer, was documenting the Middle East at a time of intense colonial interest. Images like this fed into European ideas of the "Orient," playing into both romantic and power-driven fantasies. Editor: Precisely. I see the traces of craftsmanship everywhere, from the dressed stone of the arch to the cobblestone street. But it also reveals how labor and living are structured in that street, all exposed and captured. It also gives you a peek to their everyday life Curator: The “Street Called Straight” itself has Biblical significance, believed to be where St. Paul was healed and baptized. This photo becomes a historical artifact but is interpreted, selected, and circulated within a larger project. Editor: I agree, the frame appears as sturdy. But if you notice, at the background you see just how delicate those homes and workshops are made. Are the structures of tradition also as worn? Or perhaps it demonstrates ingenuity, and shows us how to best live under an ever changing condition? Curator: These images from Graham had very specific intention. These photos also offered a perspective meant to present an idea. Its beauty masks complex politics about controlling resources, people and land. Editor: We both see its contradictions. The photograph gives value in revealing details while carefully arranging the details. Even photography's materials carry information. Curator: Absolutely. I will carry the question of context. It encourages us to remember who creates images, why, and for whom. Editor: And I think that will take me toward examining the actual and concrete means in revealing and building, whether is about this old structure or how we consume a photographic structure.