Illustration til digt af Erik Bøgh 1855

This is Carl Bøgh's illustration for a poem by Erik Bøgh. The illustration depicts a Black man in a tropical setting, accompanied by a pig. This image, made during a period of Danish colonialism, exists within a broader history of European representation of non-white people. In the visual language of the time, such images often reinforced racial hierarchies and stereotypes. The inscription, roughly translating to "There we have him! It is Papa! The organ calls him alone," evokes the complex relationship between the colonizer and the colonized. Considering the historical context, the illustration reflects the power dynamics inherent in colonialism. How do the figures in the image embody the complexities and contradictions of colonial encounters?