Twee vrouwen en een man voor een tijdelijke woning te Japan before 1892

Editor: This is a fascinating photograph from before 1892 titled "Twee vrouwen en een man voor een tijdelijke woning te Japan," translated as "Two women and a man in front of a temporary house in Japan." It's an albumen print. The subject matter and material suggest a direct recording of everyday life, but there’s a certain staged quality as well. What stands out to you? Curator: I’m immediately drawn to the dwelling itself. The visible materials – the roughly hewn timbers, the woven mats forming the walls, and the patched roof – speak volumes about the socio-economic conditions. It begs the question: who constructed this space, and from what readily available resources? It is a clear and direct link between labor, living and art as visual document. Editor: So, you're seeing it as a kind of material document of that time period? Curator: Precisely. We can infer so much from the raw materials: their availability, their cost, the skill required to assemble them. The photographer's choice of the albumen print heightens the realism, making the scene immediate, tactile, yet also preserving it as commodity and artefact of memory. Notice how the rough-hewn timbers create an economy, of making do, reflecting, as I see it, broader issues around Japanese modernization during the Meiji era and photographic practices. Editor: It’s interesting to think about how the material aspects influence our interpretation. Do you think this image challenges traditional distinctions between art and documentation? Curator: Absolutely. It blurs those lines. By meticulously capturing this "temporary dwelling," constructed of modest materials, it elevates everyday life and labor to the level of art. Also, the labour of the photographer creating the image – the production of an albumen print itself is significant. Is it an anthropological record, an artistic statement, or both? Consider the social and economic dynamics at play both in the creation of the dwelling and its photograph. Editor: That's a lot to consider! I hadn't thought about it that way. Now I see how the focus on materiality opens up so many questions about the making and consumption of both the shelter and this image. Curator: Exactly, seeing the work with a Materialist perspective expands appreciation and provides nuanced insight into the depicted historical environment.