Professoren verlaten het oude universiteitsgebouw van de universiteit van Glasgow before 1891

Editor: This gelatin silver print, taken before 1891, captures "Professoren verlaten het oude universiteitsgebouw van de universiteit van Glasgow" or "Professors Leaving the Old University Building of the University of Glasgow". There's something melancholic about this group portrait set against the cityscape; it’s a goodbye. What symbols or cultural significance do you see here? Curator: I see the end of an era, visually encapsulated by the stairwell, a symbolic passage from one space to another. The robes the professors wear aren't simply academic regalia, they are imbued with centuries of tradition and knowledge. Note how dark and imposing the building looks compared to the light of day on the steps, which might symbolize their entry into a changed or enlightened world beyond academia, or perhaps something less idealistic like a funding shortfall! Editor: I never thought about the staircase and the robes as symbols themselves. Is it common to imbue architecture into group portraits like this? Curator: Buildings often function as silent witnesses. The composition and framing—the group on the stairs—creates a frozen narrative of collective transition. They are all gathered on the staircase that could represent power, transition, a hierarchy of some kind. Each man also represents an emblem of his discipline, a guardian of knowledge, and by exiting as a collective, suggests the conclusion to a particularly vital era. Editor: That makes so much sense. So, reading into the visual symbols gives us access to not just what is depicted, but what it meant to the subjects and maybe to the Glasgow community at the time. Curator: Exactly. And photographs like these serve as cultural memories; windows into a specific moment of historical consciousness. Every photograph contains many symbolic elements such as these professors who dedicated a good amount of their life within this structure, which brings an end to an academic legacy. Editor: I'll never look at group portraits the same way again. It is quite interesting to see symbolism used in real life in a similar manner to artwork, like we discussed in this piece. Curator: I am glad you find that informative; looking at the photo gave us a nice view into an era, with all its socio-academic undertones, so now let us move onto the next piece to keep feeding the curiosity.