Portret van een onbekende student met wandelstok 1889 - 1911

This small photographic print was likely made around the turn of the 20th century by Johan Olaf Wiklund. The photographic process itself has great social significance. Photography democratized portraiture; it took it away from the elite, and made it available to the rising middle class. This student’s carefully chosen garb, from his cap to his walking stick, speaks to his desire to be seen as a person of status. The proliferation of photography studios also created a new class of workers and professional artists, which in turn, expanded the range of aesthetic possibilities that photographic portraiture could deliver. Importantly, this portrait’s power comes not just from its subject, but from the innovative making processes that made it possible. The mass production of images changed our relationship to reality, a change that we continue to grapple with today. By paying attention to these material and social circumstances, we can more deeply appreciate the layered meanings embedded within this seemingly simple image.