Gezicht op Moor Park Mansion in Rickmansworth before 1871

This is H.V. Lemenager’s photographic print of Moor Park Mansion in Rickmansworth. Although undated, it conjures a very particular vision of Britishness. The mansion, with its severe neoclassical facade, stands as a symbol of power, wealth, and privilege—legacies of colonialism, class division, and the patriarchy. It’s impossible not to consider how such grand estates were financed and maintained, and at whose expense. The lives of those who lived and worked within its walls—the servants, laborers, and enslaved people—are conspicuously absent from this image, reminding us of whose stories get told, and whose are erased. Lemenager’s photograph doesn’t challenge traditional representations but rather entrenches them. Despite its visual appeal, it's important to reflect on the complex histories and power dynamics that such images represent. It prompts us to question what we see, and who benefits from such portrayals.