Mannen met dromedarissen in de woestijn 1867 - 1885

Editor: This is "Men with Camels in the Desert," a photograph taken by Félix Bonfils between 1867 and 1885, preserved in an albumen print. The scene has such a stark stillness to it. What strikes you most about this piece? Curator: The albumen print is key here. Consider the labor invested in its creation – the coating, sensitizing, developing. This wasn't a quick snapshot. The final image represents both Bonfils’ vision and the collaborative labor inherent in early photography, the people he photographed, and the people involved in creating the print. Editor: Collaborative labor? Could you expand on that idea a little? Curator: Photography in the 19th century was not the solitary endeavor we often imagine. Think about the individuals posed in the picture, their roles and what they would receive for this exchange. Think about those producing albumen – the egg whites had to be sourced, prepared. And then there's Bonfils himself, negotiating his role within a Western, orientalist gaze. Editor: So, it's not just about what the image depicts, but also about the social and economic context of its production. Curator: Precisely. The ‘magic’ of the image distracts people from all the complex layers of what went into its making and what the consequences of image-making are. Where was the albumen sourced from? Were Bonfils' workers local? It provokes questions about colonial exploitation, labor relations, and the consumption of the "exotic." Editor: It’s really interesting to think about all those unseen elements that contributed to the finished product, going beyond the immediate subject. I will always consider production method a key element of art, now. Curator: Indeed. Seeing the photograph not as a window onto reality, but as a carefully constructed material object, reshapes our understanding entirely.