Gezicht op het Birzhevaya Ploshchad in Sint-Petersburg met mensen, paardenwagens en een vuurtoren c. 1850 - 1880

Albert Felisch captured this view of Birzhevaya Ploshchad in Saint Petersburg using photography. The sepia tones and the stereoscopic format give us a structured, almost clinical view of a bustling city square. The composition is anchored by the imposing Rostral Column, which divides the scene vertically. The stark, classical architecture juxtaposes against the organic arrangement of people and horse-drawn carts. This interplay of rigid structure and fluid movement offers a semiotic contrast, symbolizing the dynamic tension between order and chaos within urban life. Note how the dual perspective of the stereoscope subtly destabilizes our perception, questioning the fixity of a single viewpoint. It implies that our understanding of space and reality is always mediated, fragmented, and subject to the interplay of multiple perspectives. This work invites us to question the very nature of seeing and knowing, and the role of photography in constructing our perception of reality.