Gipsmodellen voor beeldhouwwerken op het Palais du Louvre: "La Justice et la Fraternité" door Joseph Félon c. 1855 - 1857

Edouard Baldus made this photograph of plaster models for sculptures by Joseph Félon at the Louvre. The photograph frames a plaster relief with two classical figures flanking a dark circular void. Note how the composition, rigid and symmetrical, conveys a sense of monumental permanence. The figures—Justice and Fraternity—are frozen in place. Their gestures are formal and symbolic, creating a tableau of civic ideals. What does it mean to represent Justice and Fraternity as static forms? This image engages with the semiotics of power and representation. The photograph invites us to question these fixed meanings. It raises questions about the relationship between idealized forms and the dynamic realities of social life. The contrast between the sculpted relief and the stark void challenges traditional notions of presence and absence in representation. Is Baldus, through the stark and enduring qualities of photography, inviting a re-evaluation of what these ideals mean?