Portret van een vrouw met hoofddeksel 1880 - 1910

Editor: This is “Portret van een vrouw met hoofddeksel,” or "Portrait of a Woman with Head Covering," a photograph taken sometime between 1880 and 1910 by T. Taylor. The sepia tones give it such a vintage, almost ghostly feel. What draws your attention when you look at this piece? Curator: I’m immediately struck by the means of production here. This isn’t simply a photograph; it's a crafted object. The photographic image itself, while small, is encased within a larger, decorative frame. Editor: You mean the bird and the insects around it? Curator: Exactly! This is crucial. Look at the detail on that etching. It wasn’t mass produced; someone took the time to embellish this, arguably elevating a simple portrait to the realm of art, while intentionally using common images. Who was that someone? And for what social circles was this intended, I wonder. What are your thoughts on the presentation of the photo? Editor: It makes me wonder about the consumer. It’s an interesting intersection of photography, which was becoming more accessible, and handcrafted detail, adding an element of luxury. Almost as though the artist or craftsperson aimed for something in-between the industrial and individual. Curator: Precisely. And that tension is key. The materials used, the labour involved in both the photography and the embellishment – they tell us so much about the social and economic contexts in which this portrait was made and consumed. Also the image’s value in these contexts. Is this just for one family album or were multiple albums common? The answers tell so much of what these albums meant for our ancestors. Editor: It really makes you consider the labor behind what appears at first glance as a simple portrait. Thanks, I am looking at it in a very different light now. Curator: And I appreciate your reminding me about the impact of newly available technologies that allowed photography to be added to craft techniques in the first place.