Gezicht op een landschap met water before 1878

This photographic album featuring landscapes with water was created by Félix Bonfils in the late 19th century. Bonfils, a French photographer, captured images of the Middle East during a period of intense European colonial interest. These landscapes are not merely records of geographical locations; they are also cultural artifacts that reflect the power dynamics inherent in the act of representation. Bonfils catered to a Western audience eager to consume romanticized, exoticized visions of the region. His work played a role in constructing and reinforcing orientalist fantasies. Consider how the absence of local inhabitants in many of his landscape shots contributes to a narrative of the Middle East as an empty, unclaimed space, ripe for Western intervention. These images, while seemingly benign, are deeply embedded in the history of colonialism and its impact on the identities and lived experiences of Middle Eastern people.