Bellemans. Eugène (ou Michel). 23 ans, né à Gand (Belgique). Tailleur d'habits. Anarchiste. 9/3/94. 1894

Alphonse Bertillon made this mugshot of Eugène Bellemans in 1894, using photography and paper. The composition is structured around a stark contrast: a frontal portrait of the subject, centered and rigidly posed, against a softly blurred background. The photograph's sepia tones lend a sense of distance, yet the subject's gaze meets ours directly. The formal elements of the photograph serve a clear purpose. Bertillon, a pioneer of forensic science, sought to create a system of identification, turning the individual into a set of measurable data. The mugshot, in this context, is less about capturing an individual's essence than about reducing a person to a series of quantifiable traits. The subject is framed by the edges of the photograph, turning him into an object of scrutiny. Yet, within this rigid format, the photograph hints at the tension between individuality and categorization, challenging the viewer to consider the human cost of such classification.