Istanbul met een brug in het midden en een toren met daarop een koepel aan de rechterkant 1909 - 1918

Editor: Here we have an anonymous photograph entitled "Istanbul with a bridge in the middle and a tower with a dome on the right", likely created between 1909 and 1918, and made using the albumen print process. The composition feels incredibly dense; you can almost sense the city's teeming activity. What are your initial thoughts on this work? Curator: It’s important to acknowledge albumen prints in relation to the development of mass media. The albumen process involved coating paper with egg white, which was readily available. This relatively accessible method speaks to the burgeoning of photographic image production. Considering its orientalist style, how might this widespread use of albumen prints reinforce power dynamics between the West and the East through representation and consumption? Editor: That's interesting – I hadn’t considered the power dynamics inherent in the medium itself! Are you suggesting that even the means of producing and distributing these images played a role in reinforcing orientalist views? Curator: Precisely! Who controlled the photographic studios? Who profited from the sale and circulation of these images? And who had the privilege to consume them? Think about the labour involved. Was it all local or imported? These material conditions significantly shaped the narratives presented in these photographs. The “monochrome” look is not just aesthetic – it also reveals the technical limitations of the period and the industrial processes behind it. Editor: So, looking at this photograph, you're not just seeing a cityscape but also a complex web of labour, materials, and economic relationships that influenced how Istanbul was presented to the world. Curator: Exactly. Examining the albumen print shifts our focus from a simple picturesque view to the social and material circumstances of its production, circulation, and consumption. Editor: I’ve definitely gained a new perspective. I am realizing that even something as seemingly straightforward as a photograph can be a product of complex systems of power and economics. Thanks!