Olifant met een verzorger in een dierentuin in Londen c. 1875 - 1900

Thomas James Dixon captured this photograph of an elephant with its keeper at the London Zoo sometime around the turn of the century. The image invites us to consider the evolving relationship between humans and the natural world. Zoos, like the one depicted here, emerged as public institutions in the 19th century, reflecting a growing interest in scientific exploration, coupled with the need to control the exotic animal world that colonization had opened up. The keeper’s uniformed presence, the brick enclosure, and the very act of photographing all speak to the human desire to contain and categorize nature. But this is more than a record of institutional power. I’d encourage you to consider this image against the backdrop of Britain’s imperial reach at the time. Images like this circulated widely, shaping public perceptions of distant lands and their inhabitants, both human and animal. To fully appreciate the layers of meaning here, a look into the archives of the London Zoo would be invaluable, along with studies of Victorian attitudes towards empire and the natural sciences. The meaning of art, as we can see, is always contingent on its social and institutional context.