Barbier. Émile, Alphonse. 36 ans, né à Paris. Peintre en bâtiment. Anarchiste. 26/2/94. 1894

Alphonse Bertillon made this photograph of Émile Barbier in Paris, probably using an early form of the gelatin silver process. But this is more than a simple portrait; it's a mugshot, taken in February 1894. Bertillon was the head of the photography department for the Parisian police, pioneering forensic photography and modern criminology. The details tell us so much. The man's name, age, occupation as a house painter, and the politically charged label "anarchist" link this image directly to the social anxieties of its time. France, and Paris in particular, was a hotbed of anarchist activity, and the police kept detailed records of anyone suspected of sympathizing with the movement. Bertillon's photographs weren't intended as art, but as tools of surveillance. Yet, they reveal the complex relationship between the individual and the institutions of power. To fully understand this image, we might consult police archives, historical studies of anarchism, and analyses of the visual culture of crime. Through such investigations, we can begin to appreciate how social context shapes the meaning of even the most seemingly objective images.