Fotoreproductie van het schilderij De bruiloft te Kana door Paolo Veronese before 1875

This is an anonymous photogravure from an unknown date of Paolo Veronese’s painting, “The Wedding at Cana,” and it is currently held at the Rijksmuseum. The print presents us with a deeply layered composition, organized to move the eye through a theatrical display of figures and architectural elements. Note the use of light and shadow, how it articulates the forms and spaces within this reproduction. The original painting by Veronese is a work of the High Renaissance, a period marked by a renewed interest in classical antiquity and a focus on humanism. This photogravure, while removed from the original in medium and time, retains the dynamic arrangement of the original. The formal structure, therefore, becomes a study in how meaning is mediated through reproduction and how our perception shifts across different modes of representation. Consider how the absence of colour alters our perception of the painting’s intended effect. Does it flatten the space, or does it reveal underlying structures that might otherwise be obscured by the vibrancy of the original’s colours?