Saulnier. Alphonse, Joseph. 31 ans, né à Paris XXe. Tourneur sur bois. Anarchiste. 14/3/94. 1894

Curator: I'm struck by the haunting stillness of this portrait. There's a deep melancholia etched in those eyes. It's almost palpable, wouldn’t you agree? Editor: Absolutely. This is one of Alphonse Bertillon’s mugshots from 1894. The inscription reads: "Saulnier. Alphonse, Joseph. 31 ans, né à Paris XXe. Tourneur sur bois. Anarchiste." A wood turner by trade and, crucially, an anarchist. It’s a gelatin-silver print, a format that lends itself to the stark realism Bertillon was pioneering. Curator: Knowing he was an anarchist changes everything! That sadness I sensed could also be defiance, simmering beneath the surface. He's not just a face; he's a symbol of rebellion, however subdued. Editor: Precisely. Bertillon’s system of identification, “bertillonage,” aimed to control and categorize individuals considered threats to the social order. These weren't just neutral portraits; they were tools of surveillance. Saulnier’s calm gaze, knowing he's being documented for his political beliefs…it's incredibly powerful. Curator: There's a strange intimacy here, too. It feels voyeuristic, like peering into a stranger’s soul. It also forces us to confront our own assumptions about criminality and identity. I can almost hear him breathe. It's as though the photograph seeks to capture the totality of an individual. But that totality seems somehow slippery, always just beyond our reach. Editor: His story is also part of a much larger conversation about power, resistance, and the construction of criminality in the late 19th century. It reminds us that systems of power, even those that claim objectivity, are always imbued with ideology. Anarchism was a threat, but Saulnier was more than just an anarchist. Curator: And perhaps his quiet gaze is a potent counterpoint to that. An assertion of individuality within a system designed to erase it. A wood turner, an anarchist, a man…a person looking back at us across time. I think about the revolution he craved; it might start with looking at each other with the compassion of humanity. Editor: His image serves as a potent reminder of the individuals behind the labels, of the complex lives caught in the machinery of history. It definitely forces us to ask, who is Saulnier beyond the gaze that seeks to classify and contain?