Portret van een onbekende man en vrouw arm in arm before 1906

This photographic portrait of an unknown man and woman, arm in arm, was made by Adolf Jakisch in Vienna. The sepia tones, paper surface, and relatively small dimensions are all indicative of a method that democratized portraiture in the late nineteenth century. Photography changed everything about image-making. Before, portraits were the domain of the wealthy, who could afford to commission a painting. But with the advent of photography, suddenly anyone could have their likeness captured. What was once an elite art became a widely available commodity, part of a burgeoning consumer culture. Consider the subjects in the photograph, likely a working- or middle-class couple. Their clothing, though not extravagant, suggests a certain level of respectability. The man's tailored suit and the woman's ornate hat are products of the Industrial Revolution, made possible by new manufacturing technologies and global trade networks. This portrait isn't just an image; it's a document of a changing society, where new technologies altered traditional hierarchies.