Gezicht op twee eilanden van Fiji before 1899

"Gezicht op twee eilanden van Fiji", or "View of Two Islands of Fiji", is a monochromatic print by W. McM. Woodworth. The image invites us to consider the colonial gaze and its impact on the representation of distant lands. During the time this image was produced, Fiji was under British colonial rule, a period marked by the exploitation of resources and the disruption of indigenous ways of life. Woodworth’s photograph freezes two islands, Nuku Mbalate and Nuku Mbasanga, but the islands and its peoples were far from frozen in time. They were living through a period of immense change. This image is more than just a landscape; it's a visual record embedded with power dynamics. How does the act of observing and documenting transform the observed? How does it affect the identity and future of the Fijian people? By contemplating these questions, we begin to understand the complex interplay between art, history, and identity.