['Aqueduct in open cut no. 14', 'Aqueduct in open cut no. 18'] before 1887

Curator: These paired albumen prints, created before 1887 by P. de Luze, offer a fascinating look at the infrastructure projects of the era, both titled 'Aqueduct in open cut', depicting different phases of the construction process. What are your first thoughts? Editor: A sense of epic endeavor! They are full of human-shaped shadows, dwarfed against that rock-scarred chasm... a bit daunting, yes, but also stirring. Like looking at the foundations of something grand. Curator: It’s certainly intended to convey that sense of progress and industrial might. The use of albumen print, a popular photographic process at the time, speaks to the documentary aspect, recording this transformation of the landscape. I imagine the work involved. Editor: Makes you think about the human cost, doesn't it? The labor— the backs bent, the muscles strained, working under what conditions? There is some roughshod timbering as well in these pits. Curator: Precisely! That element of labor is essential here, it goes beyond the aesthetic representation of landscape to hint at how these engineering works reshaped environments but also changed communities. Note that this artist-engineer took some liberties with point of view; the vertical lines give way to soft shadow...the workers look diminutive at that depth... a commentary. Editor: It’s true. But that tonal quality lends it such a dreamy feel. Almost like a half-remembered story— a beautiful myth of creation and change and... yeah, some backbreaking drudgery. The two together make for the artful, brutal document that we see. Curator: So in a way, what we have here isn't just record or engineering in action; we have early public relations! Just look at the details in the excavation and materials, designed for maximum propaganda effect... but it has achieved more than its stated goals in the eyes of this beholder! Editor: Exactly, from pure ambition, you see more truth than the client ever intended... It is as true to say, “progress marches on,” as it is to ask ourselves what or whom did it march over? Fascinating artifacts either way, but for entirely different reasons.