Groepsportret gemaakt tijdens de Landbouwtentoonstelling in Middelburg in 1869 1869

Hendrik Hermanus Roelse took this group portrait in 1869 in Middelburg using photographic materials and processes common for the time. The sepia tone of the print speaks to the historical techniques employed, likely involving light-sensitive chemicals and a careful developing process in a darkroom. Looking closely, you see men of varying social class posing proudly in front of a steam-powered machine, symbolic of the agricultural exhibition. The photograph implies a narrative of progress and industry, of agricultural advancement enabled by the labor of those not pictured, whose work made possible both the event and the technologies displayed. The tonal range, determined by the original chemistry and printing, casts a uniform light on the subjects, who were likely posed for several minutes. By considering the material processes of image-making, we can appreciate how photography, like other forms of craft, is deeply embedded in its social and economic context, not separate from it.