Portret van Hermann Wilhelm Vogel before 1905

This portrait of Hermann Wilhelm Vogel was created in an unknown year by an anonymous artist and reproduced in a printed book. The image depicts a besuited man with a neatly trimmed beard; this sartorial style hints at the increasing professionalization of the sciences in late nineteenth-century Europe. Vogel was a German photochemist who pioneered advancements in color photography. Placed in a book, the portrait signals the growth of scientific publishing and the circulation of knowledge through institutionalized networks like universities and scientific societies. The rise of photography itself had a profound effect on visual culture, challenging traditional forms of representation and opening new possibilities for documentation and artistic expression. Understanding Vogel's contributions requires delving into archives of scientific journals, photographic societies, and the broader social and economic conditions that supported these innovations. In this way, the history of photography, portraiture and publishing are intertwined.