Inzegening van het huwelijk van prinses Juliana en prins Bernhard in de St. Jacobskerk in Den Haag, 7 januari 1937 Possibly 1937

Editor: Here we have Erich Salomon's "Inzegening van het huwelijk van prinses Juliana en prins Bernhard in de St. Jacobskerk in Den Haag, 7 januari 1937", a gelatin silver print, probably made in 1937. It captures what looks like a somber moment from a royal wedding. What can you tell me about it? Curator: Well, let's consider the materials. This isn't just any snapshot. It's a gelatin silver print, a process that allowed for mass reproduction. Consider the social context. A royal wedding—meant for public consumption and the solidification of national identity—is here captured through the reproducibility afforded by photographic technology. How does this mass production alter our understanding of this historical event? Editor: I suppose it transforms the private act of marriage into a public commodity, available to anyone. Curator: Precisely! And consider the labour involved. From the manufacture of the photographic materials to the photographer's work, and then the distribution and consumption of the image – this wedding becomes implicated in networks of production and exchange. Does viewing the wedding in this way diminish its significance? Editor: Maybe, but it also reveals all the unseen work and material processes that make such a grand event possible. Curator: Exactly. We're not just seeing a romantic event, we're seeing a meticulously constructed and reproduced image that participated in the economy of the time. I wonder, what are your final thoughts about this wedding celebration, framed by a materialist perspective? Editor: I see how focusing on the photograph's materiality and production opens up questions about the wedding’s broader cultural and economic implications. Thank you for that analysis!