Darjeeling, India c. 1865

This is Samuel Bourne's photograph, "Darjeeling, India." Bourne was part of a wave of 19th-century European photographers who traveled to India to document its landscapes and cultures during the British colonial era. Bourne’s photographs were instrumental in shaping Western perceptions of India. Works like this one not only showcased the region's exotic beauty, but also implicitly supported the colonial narrative of exploration and dominance. The dense foliage and intricate detail invite viewers to imagine the unseen, perhaps exoticizing a land and its people for an audience far removed from the realities of colonial life. Consider the emotional distance in the photograph. The absence of people, the emphasis on the land, and the romanticized framing, all tell a story about power, perspective, and the human desire to capture and possess what is seen as ‘other.’ It beckons us to reflect on how we engage with images of distant lands and cultures.