Gipsmodel voor beeldhouwwerk op het Palais du Louvre c. 1855 - 1857

Edouard Baldus created this photograph of a plaster cast for a sculpture on the Palais du Louvre. It shows a triangular pediment, full of classical figures and symbols. Baldus was working in France during a time of massive reconstruction and nation-building. Photography was seen as a tool to document and celebrate these changes. Yet, while this photograph celebrates French artistic heritage, it also subtly reinforces the power structures of the time. The Louvre, as a symbol of French cultural identity, is framed through a medium that was still emerging. What does it mean to document traditional art forms through new technologies? Baldus invites us to consider not just the beauty of the sculpture, but also the ways in which it contributes to the story France tells about itself. This image captures a moment in time when art, politics, and technology were all intersecting to shape national identity.