Interieur van het Crystal Palace tijdens de Great Exhibition of the Works of Industry of All Nations van 1851 1851

This photograph of the Crystal Palace was taken by Claude-Marie Ferrier in 1851. As you can see, the photo captures the interior of the Palace during the Great Exhibition, a moment of immense national pride for Britain. The Crystal Palace was erected at a time when the British Empire was at its peak, with colonial power dynamics shaping what and who was showcased. Consider, though, the absence of the colonized. The Exhibition ostensibly celebrated global industry, but it did so through a lens of British dominance. The Palace itself, with its innovative use of glass and iron, symbolized Britain's industrial and technological prowess. Think about how the architecture serves not just as a backdrop, but as a statement of power, and whose stories are being told, and whose are being left out. This photograph encapsulates a moment in time, but also prompts us to question the narratives it perpetuates.