Portret van Willem I Frederik, koning der Nederlanden 19th century

This miniature portrait of King William 1 was made anonymously, and its diminutive size immediately suggests something about its function. It's a photomechanical print, made using a technique that allowed images to be reproduced quickly and cheaply. Look closely, and you can see the telltale signs of this process - a slightly grainy texture, and a limited tonal range. It’s quite different from a hand-painted portrait. This was not about unique artistic expression; it was a mode of mass production. The rise of photography went hand-in-hand with the Industrial Revolution. New technologies allowed for an exponential increase in visual information, and for images to reach a much wider audience. This little portrait is a product of that shift. It speaks to the democratizing potential of reproductive technologies. Next time you look at a photograph, remember that it's not just a record of reality. It's also a product of a complex social and technological system, with its own history and implications.