Portret van een onbekend kind staand op een stoel 1878

Curator: This is an albumen silver print dating back to 1878. Its title is "Portret van een onbekend kind staand op een stoel," or Portrait of an Unknown Child Standing on a Chair, held here at the Rijksmuseum. Editor: Immediately, I’m struck by the sepia tones and the rather stiff pose. There’s something about the gelatin-silver-print medium itself, and the way it captures light here, that contributes to the somewhat melancholic feel. Curator: The tonality definitely informs the image’s mood. Consider the interplay of light and shadow, how it sculpts the child's features and delineates the lace-like texture of their garments. It emphasizes the sitter's central position and the textures. Editor: Absolutely. I’m also thinking about the materiality of the chair the child is perched on. The upholstery seems quite plush, even regal. But the chair’s high position suggests it was set up so that the young sitter could fit in frame, pointing to the artifice in making this photographic image in Charles Binger's photographic establishment. What does the labor behind such set design tell us about commercial photography during this period? Curator: It signifies more than commerce alone, as this photograph's function as genre-painting portrait offers up conventions, with props functioning symbolically to position the sitter within cultural ideals of the era. Notice the calculated composition—the strategic arrangement of forms within the picture plane—heightens the overall sense of contained composure. Editor: But at what cost to the unknown sitter? While the lace fabric itself and soft paper material give an ethereal, decorative feeling, to me they come across here as materials intended for use value, converted by an unknown artist or tailor. Considering how Binger was literally "dressing up" this young body with this photographic medium brings home the historical conditions in which these photographic commissions were operating. Curator: It’s undeniable that these power dynamics impact interpretation. What is undeniable however is Binger’s mastery over lighting and tone. Together, they reveal profound interiority; capturing more than just superficial resemblance to this otherwise "unknown child". Editor: Ultimately, both of our perspectives, yours about artifice and conventions, and mine regarding its art production practices, bring depth to our engagement. This child’s portrait really allows us to consider photography's transformative process then. Curator: Indeed, this quiet portrait speaks volumes about our own methods of looking, our frameworks for interpreting images of the past, too.