Interieur van de Ecce Homo-boog before 1878

Editor: Here we have Féliz Bonfils's "Interieur van de Ecce Homo-boog," a gelatin silver print from before 1878. It feels like stepping back in time, a preserved moment. What do you see in this piece, especially considering its age? Curator: What strikes me immediately is the presumed neutrality of the photographic gaze being applied to a site of deep religious and historical significance. How can we disentangle Bonfils' intentions from the weight of centuries of patriarchal control embedded within this religious architecture? Editor: That’s a perspective I hadn’t considered. So, you're suggesting the image isn't just a neutral capture? Curator: Exactly. The camera, even then, was not a neutral tool. Bonfils, as a European photographer working in the Levant, operated within a colonial context. We must ask: Whose story is being told here, and whose is being omitted or suppressed? The composition itself, framing the Ecce Homo arch, reinforces a certain power dynamic. Editor: So, by focusing on the architecture, is he reinforcing existing power structures? Curator: Precisely. Consider the absence of contemporary inhabitants in these spaces. What does that say about who had access to these places, and whose lives were deemed worthy of documentation? Even something seemingly straightforward, like architectural photography, is loaded with social and political implications. Editor: This really makes me think about how art can inadvertently perpetuate inequalities. Thank you for that crucial shift in perspective! Curator: Indeed! It's a constant process of re-evaluation and challenging our assumptions, and seeing what the photographic record shows.