The old photos in a new days. Days of Brothers Alinari.

I don´t know how about you, but I am a bit of a black and white person. On one side, I enjoy thinking about the innovation, future, but on the other hand, I love browsing through the antique stores, opening the hidden drawers, and exploring the secrets of the old letters, mysterious postcards, photographs, last drops of the vintage perfumes almost dried out.

These objects carry the stories, that were important, but maybe also not. Maybe amusing, or simply, mattered in their times for those involved.

Seeing the old images of the places makes us naturally compare the information about the creators of the works and their audience. Here I have selected beautiful photographs by Brothers Alinari, that takes us to the very tranquil atmosphere of „vintage Venice“.

Do you like the old stuff? Let´s open this box.

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Brothers Alinari: The canal at Giudecca

Thinking about these days, and the possibility literally for everyone to be the influencer, filmmaker, singer, marketer. With technological advancement, we are given a great opportunity and it seems like many people are grabbing the chance to become famous or to have the influence.

I will not judge any of the influencer´s work, because I believe success has a rocky road and in some way, it is hard work.

Nowadays, we can choose to exchange the chance of success of absolute access to our privacy, our own thoughts without a filter, and the future of our privacy.

It is good sometimes to reflect on what was happening before our times, before the times of our parents. We might be judging the influence some people achieve success today, and which media they use.

Just as people were afraid of electricity, or they were very sure the world is going to finish after the year 999, some people think, that with social media, the world is finished. I don´t know the answer or the peaceful solution on many negative aspects of it, such as fake news and tremendous manipulative power, we are opened to every day. But I know one thing.

Brothers Alinari, the entrance to Arsenale

Every time, every chapter of history had its crisis, revolutions. It was only on the individuals how every single person would tackle it. Do we sometimes think about the gadgets we use? Do we use it wisely, or do we just go with the flow?

"Everything flows, and nothing abides, everything gives way, and nothing stays fixed."

Heraclitus

While I love looking behind the shoulder and searching for some answers and stories in history, I feel more and more strongly the importance of us to be smart, to see the moment where we stand as humanity, not to be fooled or to be tricked. Just as in the past, sellers were knocking on people´s homes, offering them home supplies, later on, electronics, we have today these doors and windows opened every day and the sellers simply climb to our homes without knocking.

And we let them sleep and eat in our homes and in our minds. They speak to us, they let us believe that the purchase will make us better or smarter. It has always been like that. The difference is, the seller and marketer in the medieval market had funny clothes and some fancy hat-producing sound, today the same person goes dressed in the invisible cape, but still makes a sound.

How can we be clever and draw a line? Let´s contemplate over the history and let us compare where we are now.

“In photography, there is a reality so subtle that it becomes more real than reality.”

— Alfred Stieglitz

Brothers Alinari, Piazza San Marco

In the past, when traveling, I have enjoyed climbing around the piles of antiques in the stores, exploring the material culture of the cities. I simply loved the patina of antique postcards, old books. I loved finding old notes, such as in one particular book that I might have sold.

There was handwritten this, on the first blank page: „Today in the evening, when I started to read this book, a fire broke at the neighbour. I went to help to shut the fire and now I will start reading this book“. October 12, 1947.

Brothers Alinari: The view of Canal Grande with Palazzo Cavalli (now Franchetti) with Salute.

To find this was probably more exciting than the whole book, and even, I really don´t recall its name. What I recall was feeling about the moment, that some person, dozens of years ago had in hands the same book, and decided to share with a future reader his or her moment of taming the fire.

I believe, there is a certain amount of consciousness if deciding to write something, which we believe would last more years.

Not only as of the material note but as well as a story, myth shared from „mouth to mouth“. And this is the difference. This is what makes civilization civilized.

We are now trained to share only instant, fast information, that does not need to have a further meaning, that it does not matter what you shared, but the fact that you share does count. Does it count, people? It is like talking if you have nothing to say.

Let´s picture the scene. You are sitting with friends, and you have nothing to say. So you start to name names of the butterflies in Latin or German, or colors, or counting. Is it the part of the context? No. Does it survive until the next morning? No. Is it funny, inspiring, clever? No,.... only if somebody loves to hear Latin names of butterflies.

It does count for somebody who wants to have a record of your every spoken word to program the artificial intelligence, to understand what is inside of our brains, so that it can predict what is inside of our heads and what will be inside of our heads tomorrow.

It is a bit boring, but the forms of collection of the information, data, or let´s say more poetically wisdom it is part of human evolution and we are giving it a generous space.

Brothers Alinari, the interior of Basilica di San Marco, Piazza San Marco

“Taking an image, freezing a moment, reveals how rich reality truly is.”

Anonymous

In Europe, we had times, when we don´t know what was happening, really, and we cal lit simply movement or transition of the nations. Around the 6th – 8th century, we don´t have too much art to study, nor furniture, or any material culture such as clothes, castles. We can assume these were times of chaos, civilizations fighting with each other, changing of the locations, routes, foundations of the new systems. We don´t have any records of what these people created, consciously did.

We can only assume they were fighting with each other, fighting for their existence.

What is the difference between us, and the people fighting in the 8th century, while living in the improvised shacks? They did not invent anything such as the Renassaince people or did not leave us any revolutionary medication that would move civilization forward. Probably, they left after themselves a lot of blood, and maybe did not have a chance to create paintings, jewelry, they were fighting for their life.

Brothers Alinari, Piazza San Marco with the Basilica, Saint Mark´s Campanile.

The social system was shaken, a new system of ruling and the organization of the society, new beliefs were being developed. The same in ancient Greece. We have periods with tons of monuments, material creations, stories, that influence our literature and archetypes until today. And then there were times of darkness, no poetry, no books, just fire, and hunger. Spiritual and the real one. No high ideas, no high art, just fighting for the basic needs.

Strangely, we don´t suffer luckily generally and universally with fires and hunger( not everywhere), and at the same time, we consciously decide to live every day such as in the dark ages. Why? When did we allow this?

I don´t think we should all create a piece of poetry, revolutionary melodies such as Bach. But we can do our bits to make humanity worth its evolution, to have all those sacrifices of the past worth the mention.

Brothers Alinari, Canal Grande, Dogana and Santa Maria della Salute 1880- 1895

Somebody had fought for human rights, so why do we give up privacy that easily? Somebody has developed for us the system to share the information, knowledge, why do we ignore it and choose blunt content, that gives us nothing, but nothing?

The current trend is teaching us that the more we share, the better. It is though cheap giving away the personal truth, and in a way, forgetting who we are. The influencer might get some bonus out of it, though the data is forever there, everyone knows how the bathroom of the influencer looks like and which face cream he or she uses. The mystery is gone, the privacy a long time ago.

Do I sound like a 73 old lady? I hope not. I am simply putting together these extremes, such as times when the photos were created. Today, we have a right to share everything, and we do it. We also have the opportunity to do many smart things, but we choose not to do it, we prefer to write a stupid comment on one of the social media walls and prefer if someone else would do the job.

Back in the times of Brother Alinari, human rights as we enjoy today did not exist, nor laws protecting a producer or consumer, healthcare, or basic needs.

The ladies did not enjoy voting right too much, there was still immense race segregation, children working, something we would find ridiculous today. The hygiene level is very low, the differences between social statuses are enormous. If you were a woman in those times, you would wear a hat and gloves, otherwise considered rude.

Brothers Alinari, Canal Regio or Cannaregio with the homonymous bridge 1880- 1895

Today, the majority of the world enjoys the spectacular luxury of living, which should mean the increased development of the general wealth, the spring of the art, technology, great solutions. But instead, we are consuming fast, stupid objects, art that is not art, and our ability to perceive the information is going down. I dare to name it just as Homer would say, in some way, darlings, we live in dark ages. Consciously and voluntarily.

Why somebody has made breakthrough findings in psychology, self-knowledge, humanity when we train ourselves how to lose focus and how to be blunter and blunter every day?

Because it is easy. It is easy and we all know it, but the habit and searching for a meaningful being can change it.

Let me help it. Let´s have a glimpse together at the old pictures of our favorite place of the world – Venice. Many times seen, many times talked. Let´s feel its times in the mid 19th century and let´s try to find out why somebody decided to capture these very frames. Because we do similar pictures. Just it costs us less energy. And instead of one author of such photos, very rare from the mid 19th century, we can all be the authors. And are we?

Do we choose beauty, to let the moment stand still?

“The best thing about a picture is that it never changes, even when the people in it do.”

Andy Warhol

Here come the photos of Brothers Alinari, who established their photo atelier in Florence in mid 19th century- it was in 1852 in Florence, Italy. Also very problematic era, time of nationals wars, actually wars to later on establishing modern nations that we know today.

To photograph in those times had to be well planned, it was expensive and not everyone could do it, as the technology was not too easy to master, as well the development of the photographs. Brothers Alinari were successful in their activity and they got to be the first photography company to have the right to capture the artworks in galleries of the Vatican and Louvre. (A dream job!).

Brothers Alinari, Palazzo Ducale

They got to see the artworks that many people had no chance to ever see, details from the archives, or a detailed look at the artworks that were not publicly exposed. They also got the rights to publish printed catalogs with the artworks of the museums and galleries around Italy, so the beauty of the heritage got to be reproduced and seen by many many pairs of eyes.

“To-morrow, and to-morrow, and to-morrow,

Creeps in this petty pace from day to day,

To the last syllable of recorded time;

And all our yesterdays have lighted fools

The way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle!

Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player,

That struts and frets his hour upon the stage,

And then is heard no more. It is a tale

Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,

Signifying nothing.”

William Shakespeare, Macbeth

Do you remember the theory about the art of repetition? Whatever and anyhow breathtaking we produce, if it is not seen, then repeatedly exposed, explained, it can´t become famous or important in our lifetime. Our work needs to be repeated, constantly viewed, until it would find its perfect audience or a client, that will be completely enchanted. If we will not get the information closer to the audience, it can´t be perceived.

Seeing the photos, it makes me to guess they might have cleared some of the streets or monuments in order to photograph. This means, similar production process perhaps as if we do a movie shooting today – you need to block the location, wait for the correct weather, to hire someone to block the street.

“Life ... is a tale

Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,

Signifying nothing.”

William Shakespeare, Macbeth

Brothers Alinari, Rio di San Canciano

These are not only beautiful photos with a character and the atmosphere, but they also show us how the city changed or did not change its face.

Black and white photography has another level, as it does not show us all the details and colors, so it lets us wander around the image, to let our imagine think what are the hidden details and then the reality can be much more beautiful or even the opposite.

If seeing the photos, our minds can be completely focused on the interesting details of the images. If we would visit the place in reality, or if we would visit in the thoughts, letting the mind wander and to question the truth.

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Historical photographs of Venice: Brothers Alinari Photo Archive - via Rijksmuseum under the licence CC0. Google Arts And Culture.

Text: Karolinska 2021