Rouen Cathedral, West front before 1865

Curator: The photograph before us, taken by Joseph Cundall, presents the west front of Rouen Cathedral before 1865. There’s something immediate about encountering Gothic architecture rendered in early photographic print. What are your initial impressions? Editor: I am struck by the overwhelming sense of verticality. It pulls the eye upward relentlessly. And, the contrast… such bright stone against such deep shadows. The building feels almost monumental, towering even in this still image. Curator: Indeed. Consider the political implications of these grand structures within the rapidly industrializing landscape of 19th-century Europe. Cathedrals were potent symbols, embodying not only faith but also cultural identity and, often, nationalist sentiment. Cundall's lens isn't merely capturing a building, it's presenting an institution. Editor: That makes me think about who *wasn't* inside that institution. Whose stories were silenced, whose labor literally built those stones skyward, only for them to be excluded from power and representation? When we see these awe-inspiring photos, how do we grapple with the layers of injustice embedded within them? Curator: Excellent points. We must address that. Now, architecturally, this gelatin-silver print provides us with a document of the ongoing conversation between power, representation, and progress at the time it was built and at the time the photograph was taken. It invites viewers to position themselves both in history and in relation to the towering structures around them, but it invites different dialogues depending on a visitor's own personal relationship to faith and the church. Editor: Exactly. It's a record, yes, but also an active participant in shaping perspectives. I keep returning to the choice of viewpoint; the photograph places us at ground level, emphasizing the overwhelming power that buildings, like the Cathedral, exert over our field of vision and that’s a social power as much as it is aesthetic. Curator: Understanding the social history, then, really does amplify our perspective on Cundall’s photograph. Editor: Absolutely. The weight of history and of cultural capital… It’s all in the framing. Thanks for sharing.