Gezicht op een Koerdische winkel in Bursa 1888 - 1900

Curator: Stepping into the frame, we have “View of a Kurdish shop in Bursa,” a gelatin silver print dating from around 1888 to 1900, created by the photography studio of Sébah & Joaillier. What's your initial impression? Editor: Honestly? Dust. That sepia tone just screams "ancient history" at me. It's like a snapshot unearthed from a time capsule, everything and everyone coated in a fine layer of bygone eras. Curator: That sepia is evocative, isn't it? It immediately sets a historical context, situating the image within the development of photography and also broader trends of representing "the Orient." Bursa, in Ottoman Turkey, became a frequent subject for European photographers captivated by its "exotic" qualities. Editor: "Exotic," right. Makes you wonder how the subjects felt, being frozen like this, displayed as curiosities. There's a guy filling a vessel in the foreground. What do you think is in it? It’s fun trying to imagine what an average workday for him may have been like. I imagine the details might surprise us. Curator: Well, this is where things get interesting. While ostensibly documentary, these images were very carefully composed. Notice the placement of each figure, the goods arranged, the way light illuminates certain faces… It was a production meant to feed a Western audience's pre-conceived notions. These photographs perpetuated the stereotype and simplified social, political, and class hierarchies, sometimes staging interactions with the photographer who plays as more “superior.” It reflects the complexities inherent to orientalist imagery. Editor: So, it's a curated reality. A visual script. And it feels kind of flat because of that. Everyone is placed a specific position, creating an oddly emotionless record. I miss raw spontaneity. Curator: Exactly. These images offer less about Kurdish life in Bursa and reveal more about the Western gaze consuming it. Still, the photographic process gives insight into the culture that shaped the moment it was taken. What appears, and what disappears from view are each important questions for this shot. Editor: I agree. Seeing how they saw is the only way that we, now, can truly look. Thanks to images like these we now stand on a precipice where past and present melt together and provide a fascinating moment to engage and connect with each other.