Views and Costumes of Japan

The photo album, which we chose as our object of the month in November, may look a little worn, but it still makes a stately impression. The red leather binding is adorned with magnificent, gold-embossed letters. It quickly becomes clear that this is not just any tourist souvenir. A quick search confirms this impression: Views and Costumes of Japan by Stillfried and Andersen is one of the most important testimonies to early photography in Japan for a Western audience. It was produced in the 1860s – a time when Japan was beginning to open up internationally, and a wave of enthusiasm for the Far Eastern country emerged among the Western bourgeoisie.

The motifs include portraits and everyday scenes with hand-colored tinting, as well as monochrome views of Japanese cities, villages, harbors, and landscapes – a visual journey through 19th-century Japan. Such an elaborately produced album was a luxury item and a status symbol. Stillfried's work combined documentary aspirations with careful staging: through meticulous coloring, staged backdrops, and a deliberate selection of motifs, he shaped an image of Japan that corresponded to European viewing habits and ideas of "the Far East."

Despite its age-related wear, the album retains its impact as an impressive historical document. It offers an insight into the artistic, cultural, and social perception of Japan in the 19th century and shows how photography was already functioning as a medium between documentation, art, and staging at that time. The State Library Victoria journal dedicated a wonderfully detailed article to a similar example.