Munttoren gezien vanaf het Singel c. 1860 - 1900

Editor: This is a photograph, "Munttoren gezien vanaf het Singel," taken sometime between 1860 and 1900 by Andries Jager. It looks like a cityscape with a tall tower as the main focal point. What draws my eye is the contrast between the solidity of the architecture and the implied movement of the water. What strikes you about this piece? Curator: As a materialist, I’m interested in the production of this photograph. Think about the wet collodion process likely used, the darkroom a travelling photographer like Jager would have needed, the physical labor involved in lugging around all that equipment. How did this process influence what he chose to capture and how he framed it? Editor: So, the constraints of the process shaped the image itself? Curator: Precisely! Consider the albumen print. The paper itself had to be carefully prepared. The social context of this photograph is also key. Amsterdam was rapidly changing at this time. Was Jager simply documenting the city, or was he contributing to a particular narrative about its growth and modernization? Who was buying these prints, and what did they represent to them? Editor: I hadn't considered the paper itself as part of the story, or how it spoke to a specific consumer. So it's not just the grand Munttoren but also about who commissioned it and the workers behind the final photograph? Curator: Exactly. The print's value isn't inherent but constructed through labor, materials, and consumption. Editor: That's fascinating. I will definitely look at photographs differently now, thinking about all the layers of production involved.