Quite obliging before 1908

Curator: Let’s turn our attention to this intriguing image from before 1908. It’s entitled "Quite obliging" and is part of Geldolph Adriaan Kessler's photographic series held at the Rijksmuseum. Editor: It has such a wistful quality, doesn’t it? A quiet moment captured. The sepia tones give it this dreamlike feel, like a memory half-faded. And the light, so soft and diffused. Curator: Indeed. What’s particularly compelling is understanding its place within the context of Orientalism prevalent at the time. Kessler, like many Western photographers, ventured into depicting scenes from the East, framing his subjects in a manner that often reinforced Western perceptions of Asian cultures. Editor: Absolutely. The composition guides your eye directly to the children, their expressions so genuine amidst the bustling background, with an old cart behind. I wonder, though, how aware they were of being subjects, or even how much direction they were given? Curator: Exactly, we have to consider the power dynamics at play. This photograph can be viewed through the lens of postcolonial theory, raising questions about representation, agency, and the gaze of the photographer, and thus, the viewer. The title, "Quite obliging", hints at the assumed docility and compliance often associated with the people depicted. Editor: Right, right, makes sense. Although, I can't help but feel that, beyond the social construct of "Orientalism," lies an unspoken invitation here, almost like these kids are pulling the viewer into their world and their moment. See, the graininess kind of amplifies that intimacy, doesn’t it? Curator: Precisely. We can use the photograph as a point of departure to dissect how such imagery contributed to the construction of a specific, often exoticized, image of Asia for Western audiences. We are unpacking layers of ideology, the implicit assumptions regarding the representation of other cultures. Editor: Totally! It also makes me think of that sense of suspended animation found in old portraits. What if that young woman in the back there is still lingering somewhere in time, perhaps wondering when those kiddos will tire of those rocks? Curator: By examining the piece through the intertwining frames of art history, feminist theory, and postcolonial studies, we reveal so much beyond the first, often aesthetic, impression of Kessler’s "Quite obliging." Editor: Totally! It makes you want to travel to a busy, warm-toned faraway street to sit cross-legged with those two children... even if for just a minute. I like thinking this old photo invites our imaginations into shared places like that.