Facade of the Church of St. Anne, Jerusalem 1859

Editor: This is Louis de Clercq’s photograph of the Facade of the Church of St. Anne in Jerusalem. It’s fascinating how the textures of the stone are captured. What does this image say to you? Curator: I immediately think of the labor involved in quarrying and shaping those stones. The very materiality speaks of human effort, contrasting with the church's spiritual purpose. Editor: So you see the photograph as a record of human work as much as a sacred place? Curator: Precisely. It reminds us that even the most divine aspirations are realized through earthly means, through materials extracted and shaped by human hands. Editor: I never considered the amount of physical labor to build something like this. Thanks for widening my view! Curator: My pleasure. Thinking about the making helps us understand the cultural context.