Landschoot. Edouard. 27 ans, né le 6/8/67 à Paris. Bijoutier. Anarchiste. 2/7/94. 1894

This is an albumen silver print of Edouard Landschoot, a 27-year-old Parisian jeweler and anarchist, created in 1894 by Alphonse Bertillon. The sepia tones and standardized composition reflect Bertillon's use of photography as a tool for identification. The subject is presented from the mid chest up, slightly turned to the left, which is indicative of the ‘mugshot’ genre. The gaze directed away from the camera disrupts any sense of direct connection and reinforces the construction of Landschoot as a subject of surveillance. Bertillon’s precise system intended to strip individuality, reducing the person to a set of measurable traits. Yet, the act of photographic representation is never neutral; it is a play of signs. The subject's clothing and slight smirk, undermine the very system meant to define him. Consider how this photograph, born from a desire for objective classification, inadvertently captures a moment of defiance, highlighting the tension between control and self-expression.