Kalmyk Soldiers Making a Stop in a Landscape 1772

Editor: This is "Kalmyk Soldiers Making a Stop in a Landscape" by Jean-Baptiste Le Prince. It looks like an ink drawing. I'm struck by how the figures seem both posed and relaxed. What can you tell me about it? Curator: Consider the material conditions: ink on paper, readily reproducible. Le Prince, through this medium, makes ethnographic observations available for consumption. How does this ease of production and distribution impact the viewer's understanding of the Kalmyks? Editor: So, it's less about the individual figures and more about the act of observation and how it was shared? Curator: Precisely. The print medium flattens cultural difference into a commodity. What do you make of the "Balte de Calmouks" inscription? Editor: It highlights the consumption of this cultural image, I guess. Thanks, that shifts my perspective. Curator: Indeed. It's all about considering the processes of making and viewing.