[The Harbor at Valletta, Malta] 1850s

Editor: Here we have Calvert Richard Jones’ photograph, *The Harbor at Valletta, Malta,* dating from the 1850s. It feels… hazy, almost dreamlike. The cityscape receding into the distance creates such depth! What's your take on this, especially given the time it was made? Curator: Hazy is spot on, almost sepia-toned in its recollection. But the haze isn't just aesthetic; it whispers tales of time. Remember, this is early photography, still wrestling with itself, with capturing "reality." Jones, like many of his contemporaries, used waxed paper negatives. It gave images a softer focus and incredible tonal range. Think of it like poetry attempting to grasp something vast and ineffable like a city… rather like memories fading through time. Doesn't the subject make you wonder why he selected it, how he interpreted Valletta in 1850? Editor: It's interesting that you say it's almost like poetry attempting to grasp the city. You made me think about how the angle creates this kind of tiered view, almost like acts in a play, where it invites us into the unfolding scenes... Curator: An insightful analogy to the theatre: an intimate performance of daily life... This early photographic treatment, the soft focus, makes the modern era look quaint and gentle, inviting nostalgia! What feelings does this aesthetic choice elicit in you? Editor: I like what you said about nostalgia and how early photographic treatment can evoke feelings about a different time... I now think about its imperfections as intentional aesthetic additions, too! Curator: And maybe that's the magic of it, right? The "imperfections," as you call them, are precisely where the beauty lies. We expect photography to be literal but these early prints show it could be impressionistic, capturing not just the thing itself but feeling itself. Thank you for inviting me to explore this beautiful photograph with you.