In this photograph Isaac Julien reimagined J.P. Ball’s gallery according to an engraving from the Gleason’s Pictorial illustrated newspaper. The periodical’s depiction of the studio replicates framed paintings and prints with well-dressed visitors viewing the portraits or waiting to be photographed. Gleason’s Pictorial also published a description of the gallery, in which Ball is praised for his professionality and work, and an expectation is voiced that his work will soon be known in “every State of the Union”.
The studio in Isaac Julien’s photograph incorporates a large scenic painting, a piano, lush furniture, a large camera, carpet and flowers. This photograph is shot in the Royal Academy of Art in London. The space of the museum not only functions as a backdrop for this photograph, it also serves to upend the colonial contingencies of empire as fetish and display, while also excoriating the narrative of art history.