Gezicht op de Vrijdagmarkt in Gent 1861 - 1870

This is an early photograph of the Vrijdagmarkt in Gent, Belgium. Although the photographer is unknown, the photographic process itself tells us a lot about the modern world in which this image was made. Photography, as a chemical rather than manual process, changed image-making forever. Instead of the skilled labor of painting or drawing, here we have a relatively automated procedure. Of course, the photographer still had to choose their viewpoint, and manipulate the process in the darkroom – adding their own aesthetic touch. The scale of the print, and its existence as one of a stereoscopic pair, suggests that it was made for middle-class consumption. Consider the composition of the photograph. It freezes a moment in time, but also suggests the many hands that made the buildings, and the labor that went into paving the stones in the public square. Seen in this light, photography is not simply a record, but a potent reflection on industrialization and society.