Paris Fire (The Facade of City Hall) 1871

Charles Soulier made this photograph, *Paris Fire (The Facade of City Hall)*, using a combination of light, chemistry and paper. This was not fine art in the traditional sense, but a relatively new technology, with its own set of skills and tools. Soulier documented the ravaged facade, capturing the texture of the stone, the ragged openings where windows once stood, and the cobblestone street leading up to the building. You can almost smell the smoke and feel the heat of the recent fire. Photography like this was a product of its time, not just technically, but socially. It emerged from the Industrial Revolution, with its promise of capturing reality objectively. Yet, this image is far from neutral. It speaks of destruction and perhaps, resilience. The photograph becomes a testament to the human cost of conflict, and of urban renewal. It urges us to consider the relationship between progress, destruction and the stories that materials can tell.