Portret van Charles-Ignace Plichon before 1889

This is a photographic portrait of Charles-Ignace Plichon by the photographer Lemercier. It’s mounted in a book titled "Le Nord Contemporain", a historical and biographical review. Photography in the mid-19th century was as much a craft as it was a science. The wet collodion process, which was most likely used to make this image, required a portable darkroom and meticulous preparation. The glass plate negative had to be coated, sensitized, exposed, and developed all within minutes, demanding skill and precision. This laborious process, combined with the cost of materials and equipment, meant that early photography was largely accessible to the middle and upper classes. The very act of commissioning a portrait like this speaks to Plichon's status and social standing. Yet, the photomechanical printing process that allowed it to be reproduced in a book also speaks to the democratization of images that was underway. It marks a shift in the way society documented and disseminated information, blurring the lines between elite portraiture and mass communication. It reminds us that even in the earliest days of photography, it was an intersection of art, science, and social ambition.