Gezicht op de achterzijde van het standbeeld van Santa Rosalia te Palermo 1862 - 1876

This stereoscopic image showing the rear of the statue of Santa Rosalia in Palermo, was created by Jean Andrieu in the 19th century using photography, a relatively new process at the time. The stereoscope was a popular form of entertainment, allowing viewers to see a scene in three dimensions, and photography was quickly being adopted both as a technology for recording, and as a creative medium. Andrieu would have been well aware of the new visual language afforded by this combination of techniques. The material qualities of the image – the contrast between light and shadow, and the texture of the stone in the statue and its surroundings – are heightened by the photographic process. The image captures a sense of the monument's age and decay, while also speaking to the new industrial age of mechanical reproduction that photography represented. Andrieu’s image offers a glimpse into how traditional art and craft practices were being documented, understood, and appreciated in an era of rapid technological change. It invites us to consider the relationship between the hand-made and the machine-made, and the changing role of the artist in society.