Gezicht op het stadhuis van Brussel, België before 1880

Curator: Before us is an image of the Brussels Town Hall in Belgium, captured sometime before 1880. It exists as a print from a photograph, a rather interesting duality. Editor: My first thought? Ethereal, yet imposing. It reminds me of a cathedral reaching for the heavens. You can almost smell the old paper and developing chemicals, can't you? Curator: Indeed. The material process gives us clues about circulation of images, class, and changing views of the city in the 19th century. The printmaking and photographic elements reveal the mechanics of documentation and visual representation during the period. Editor: I see that – and that initial 'D'! It's illuminated as though part of a medieval manuscript. I like how that archaic touch emphasizes the weight and longevity of urban heritage, while the photographic process itself is so new and modern, and it makes one think about this dance between past and future that's always happening in our lives and that architecture kind of makes concrete...literally! Curator: Good point! We can consider that photography democratized the accessibility to this iconic image of state power by allowing for a certain multiplication and affordability that would otherwise not have been available with something like an engraving, but photography did remain subject to the capitalist imperatives around reproduction and distribution. Editor: Absolutely! And the tones here create this whole dreamlike feeling, despite the actual physical solidity of the building. A strange sort of weightlessness. It makes you imagine you can just float up the spire like some kind of architectural ghost! Curator: Focusing on the social impact then, photography’s material conditions transformed access to the City Hall from primarily a site of governmental process to also an object of consumption. Editor: Very true. Well, thinking about its atmosphere and what you said about social context, I think that both that sense of wonder and authority have something to say to each other...It’s got me thinking about other civic buildings too, what they meant then versus what they represent now. Curator: Exactly, that is something to reflect on...an excellent image when seen as the culmination of both process and artistic intent, indeed.