Stilleven met foto's, lens, beeld en andere objecten 1855

Eduard Isaac Asser made this still life with photographs, lens, statue and other objects using photography. In this period, photography was rapidly evolving from a scientific tool to a popular medium for portraiture and documentation, reflected in the jumble of objects that Asser arranges. This still life, therefore, is also a kind of advertisement, a display of the tools of the trade and their potential uses. Asser made this photograph in the Netherlands, a country with a rich history of mercantile activity and artistic innovation. The Dutch Golden Age of the 17th century saw an explosion of genre painting and still life, reflecting the values and interests of a rising middle class. Asser invokes this tradition and, with this image, demonstrates photography’s claim to the status of art. To further understand this work, one could research the history of photography in the Netherlands, the artistic and economic context of the time, and the role of institutions such as photography studios and art societies in shaping the development of the medium.