Portret van Hendrik van Oranje-Nassau, prins der Nederlanden 1860 - 1870

This is a photograph of Hendrik van Oranje-Nassau, Prince of the Netherlands, created by Johann Schäfer, who was born in 1822. The material here is light-sensitive paper, carefully exposed to capture a likeness. As a method, photography presented a challenge to painting and sculpture, which had long been the means of preserving images for posterity. In this case, the choice of photography has everything to do with its capacity for mechanical reproduction. A photograph can be endlessly copied; it democratizes image-making, at least for those who can afford to commission a portrait. In this photograph, the prince appears as a repeatable, reproducible image, almost like currency. It's a fascinating intersection of royalty and the modern age, the handmade, and the mechanically produced. It reminds us that even the most seemingly straightforward image is the result of choices, processes, and a particular social context.