Rossi. Guillaume. 20 ans, né le 8/3/71 à Biel (Italie). Serrurier. Vagabondage. 15/1/95. 1895

This is a photograph of Guillaume Rossi, made by Alphonse Bertillon in France at the end of the 19th century. Bertillon was a French police officer and biometrics researcher, and this image comes from his extensive archive of criminal "mugshots". But these weren't just casual snapshots. Bertillon developed a meticulous system of anthropometry to identify repeat offenders. Every measurement, every angle, every detail was cataloged and cross-referenced. This new kind of institutional technology had major implications for individual liberty and the right to privacy. It was also a moment where the institutions of science started to change the way we understood our own identities. As art historians, our job is to dig into the social and institutional context that gave rise to images like this. We might research the history of policing in France, the development of photography, or the prevailing scientific theories about criminality and race. Only then can we begin to understand the power and the politics of this image.