Galerie des Cotelle in het Grand Trianon met twee vazen 1860 - 1880

Editor: This albumen print from between 1860 and 1880, titled "Galerie des Cotelle in het Grand Trianon met twee vazen" and attributed to Ernest Eléonor Pierre Lamy, has this wonderfully antiquated feeling, like peering into a forgotten era. The sheer scale of the room and the opulence on display are striking. What stands out to you? Curator: As a materialist, I’m immediately drawn to the albumen print itself. Think about the process: egg whites, silver nitrate, the deliberate act of coating and sensitizing paper to capture this scene. It’s a meticulous craft used to document and disseminate images of power. Who was consuming these images and why? Were they for the elite, to admire their spaces, or a rising middle class aspiring to emulate this lifestyle? Editor: That’s fascinating; I was focused on the composition but hadn't considered the implications of the medium itself. Curator: Consider the labor involved, too. Not just Lamy's photographic work but also the creation of those massive vases and the construction of the galerie itself. These objects and spaces are products of extensive systems of production, hierarchies of skill and exploitation. We are not just looking at a photograph of an interior, but evidence of social relations embedded within the physical world. What’s striking is the way photography is used here, almost as a tool of surveying class identity in that epoch. Editor: It shifts my perspective. I initially saw beauty and grandeur, but you’re prompting me to consider the social and economic underpinnings of this opulence. Curator: Precisely! It’s a reminder that art, even seemingly straightforward documentation, is deeply entwined with the processes, the power structures, and the circulation of materials that shape our world. Understanding how it’s made tells us something about how society itself is constructed. Editor: That’s definitely given me a lot to think about. I see the photo now with much different eyes. Thanks.