Draaibanken van de Technische School te Bandoeng 1933

This anonymous photograph captures the Draaibanken van de Technische School te Bandoeng, likely taken during the colonial era in Indonesia. The image presents a seemingly straightforward view of a technical school's workshop, filled with machinery. Yet, this scene is heavy with the weight of colonial history. The school itself was part of a system designed to train local populations in trades deemed necessary by the colonizers. Who was allowed access to this space? Were indigenous populations being prepared for skilled labor, or were they being molded into a workforce that would serve colonial interests? The photograph may seem like a neutral documentation, but it hints at the complex power dynamics at play. The machines stand as silent witnesses to the shaping, quite literally, of labor and identity within a colonial context. Consider the human element absent from this image, and the implications of a space designed for technical training under colonial rule.