Slot Sanssouci te Potsdam 1879

Editor: So, this is "Slot Sanssouci te Potsdam," a photograph by Johann Friedrich Stiehm, from 1879. It looks like an albumen print. The building itself feels very imposing, almost austere, and the men standing on either side of the staircase seem dwarfed by it. What do you see in this piece? Curator: Well, the choice to include figures at the base immediately invites a conversation about power dynamics and spatial control. It’s interesting to consider how the photographer situates the viewer in relation to the palace. Are we meant to identify with those figures? Does the Romantic style evoke a sense of longing for an idealized past, one reserved for the elite? This albumen print gives us detail but also a soft aesthetic, that could make this romantic interpretation quite reasonable. Editor: I hadn't thought about the choice of those figures. Their clothing indicates they are from that era but I had only seen them as just regular people observing the palace, that softens the mood. Are they just 'common' men dwarfed by this powerful construction? Curator: Exactly! And within that framing, the photograph can be read as a commentary on class and access to spaces of power. The grand staircase could symbolize the barriers faced by ordinary people in accessing privilege. Who had real access to that staircase? We might question who the work truly serves and whose gaze it centers. Is this supposed to promote access or to emphasize the class differences? Editor: That completely changes my view! I was just seeing a pretty building. But when you frame it this way, the photograph invites you to examine the role that the palace plays as more than a mere tourist destination. Curator: Right. It is so critical to see beyond surface beauty and explore the complex socio-political narratives embedded within these seemingly straightforward landscape images. Editor: I’m definitely seeing more depth here now, especially in considering those overlooked figures. Thanks for opening my eyes to the layers of social commentary at play here!