Moos'mie 1868

This hand-colored albumen print, “Moos’mie,” was created by Felice Beato in Japan, sometime between 1863 and 1877. The image captures a posed portrait of a young woman, likely a geisha, in traditional attire. Beato, an Italian-British photographer, documented life in Asia, and his work offers a glimpse into 19th-century Japanese culture as it was being presented to the West. The photograph's aesthetic choices – the oval format, the hand-coloring – reveal the influence of European artistic conventions on the emerging medium of photography. It’s important to remember that this image isn't a neutral record. It was made during a time of great social and economic upheaval, as Japan opened its doors to foreign trade and influence after a long period of isolation. Scholars study photographs like this alongside travel accounts, diplomatic papers, and other historical documents to better understand the complex cultural exchanges of this period. In doing so, we can start to appreciate the role of photography in shaping Western perceptions of Japan.