Gezicht op de Elbe langs Wehlen en Pirna 1860 - 1890

Editor: This is a gelatin-silver print titled "Gezicht op de Elbe langs Wehlen en Pirna" created between 1860 and 1890 by Ferrier Pére-Fils et Soulier. The view, with the river snaking through the landscape, is really striking. What aspects of its composition particularly stand out to you? Curator: The stereoscopic format is primary. It attempts to re-present visual experience, but what kind of experience does it encode? Note the horizon line: perfectly horizontal and consistently placed about one-fifth down the frame. This regulates the composition in both views, and it guides the viewer's eye through an ideal recession, not a lived, phenomenal experience. The photographic process captures light and shadow, but the perspective is determined algorithmically, creating a sense of distance and mastery, an idealization of nature, more than mere observation. Editor: I see what you mean about the "ideal" recession. Is it less about capturing a real moment and more about adhering to some kind of aesthetic ideal? Curator: Precisely. Consider the distribution of tones, the balance between light and shadow. While it represents the light in nature, it emphasizes order. Semiotically, the landscape becomes a system of signs rather than just a field of vision. Editor: It is really interesting to look at it through that perspective. It is like nature but also something constructed at the same time. I definitely learned something new about how to view photographic landscapes. Curator: Indeed, an ideal landscape presented by carefully controlling representational components such as composition, tones and perspective. I am happy to exchange views and guide you.