Ingang van de Hermitage in Sint-Petersburg met atlanten c. 1880 - 1900

Curator: This photograph by J. Daziaro, titled “Entrance to the Hermitage in St. Petersburg with Atlantes,” was taken sometime between 1880 and 1900. Editor: It strikes me as so heavy! Not just the subject matter, which is undeniably grand, but also the visual weight, this almost sepia-toned solemnity… Curator: It’s an albumen print, which was a popular photographic process at the time, known for its fine detail and tonal range. The image is very much a representation of power; those Atlas figures holding up the entablature and the implicit weight of Russian cultural heritage… it echoes classical motifs. Editor: Precisely, though looking closely, I can’t help but think about those men, presumably quarrymen and sculptors, involved in the labour of cutting and shaping the stone. Those atlantes, the columns… such visible labor is subsumed into this idea of effortless, timeless power, literally built and staged. Curator: They are also, if we pull back further, an assertion of Russian cultural power in the broader geopolitical context of the late 19th century. This form of cultural orientalism often represented Russian imperial aspirations, the architecture itself taking on symbolic value. Editor: Right, and thinking of its purpose as an early form of visual propaganda, the circulation of such prints surely influenced perceptions of Russia in the West. These types of photos were commodities. They weren’t just "art." Curator: Exactly. They carry cultural significance beyond their immediate aesthetic appeal. Those Atlantes evoke an idea of enduring cultural memory, strength and steadfastness. Editor: But also, like all photographic processes, this photograph serves as evidence of labour, consumption, production, global economics all folded into what at first seems like just another museum façade. Curator: Food for thought. It highlights how symbols often mask the underlying social and economic forces at play. Editor: Absolutely. This albumen print makes one contemplate more than it reveals at first glance.