Portret van een man met baard 1870 - 1900

This is a photograph, ‘Portret van een man met baard,’ made by Symonds & Co. The photographic print is housed in a decorative card mount, a common presentation format in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Photography democratized portraiture, offering a relatively inexpensive alternative to painting for the middle classes. Studios like Symonds & Co. employed skilled technicians to operate cameras, develop prints, and retouch negatives. The final product, often mounted and framed, mimicked the look and feel of traditional painted portraits, thus bridging the gap between industrial production and fine art. The photograph’s surface, once glossy, now bears the marks of time, reflecting the inherent fragility of the medium. The mount, with its embossed details, speaks to the era’s aspirations for accessible elegance. Mass production techniques allowed studios to create these affordable keepsakes, capturing likenesses and preserving memories for a growing consumer culture. This image reminds us that even seemingly straightforward portraits are products of complex social and economic forces, intertwining art, craft, and the rise of industrial capitalism.