Gezicht op Napels, Castel dell'Ovo en de Vesuvius, Italië 1857 - 1914

Curator: We’re looking at a photograph by Giorgio Sommer, “View of Naples, Castel dell'Ovo and Vesuvius, Italy." It was created between 1857 and 1914. Editor: It feels very studied, almost staged. The light is beautiful, though a bit melancholy for a cityscape, isn't it? The way the trees frame the distant buildings… very deliberately composed. Curator: Sommer, in his era, was keenly aware of how photography could not just record but also compose, shaping our vision of the world. Here we see pictorialism subtly shaping the landscape through soft focus. What materials reveal themselves to you in this albumen or gelatin-silver print? Editor: The tonal range of the gelatin-silver process grants this landscape its distinct texture. I keep wondering about the labor involved. Transporting all the necessary materials and chemicals to Naples and mastering those processes to capture a fleeting image. Who were the people assisting Sommer and under what conditions did they labor? Curator: An intriguing consideration. From a purely structural viewpoint, notice how the horizontal lines – the coastline, the horizon – draw the eye across the scene and toward the dormant Vesuvius, contrasted with the strong verticals of the trees and boats. It’s almost a classical arrangement, fitting for the Romantic era. Editor: Those fishing boats represent a life intertwined with the sea. Considering the broader context of industrial development in Europe, images like these perhaps reflect the romantic ideals, an idealized world disconnected from mechanized labor that, nonetheless, Sommer's photographic practice relied on. Curator: And yet that's the tension in many pieces – the beauty and what might be obscured in its making. This print makes visible the ongoing dialog of city and nature. Editor: Yes, making it so visible really does highlight the layers of production, the economic currents subtly present, a constant theme.