Photo Elysée takes a critical look at its colonial archives

Photo Elysée takes a fresh look at the archives of the Lehnert & Landrock studio, which entered the Lausanne museum's collections in 1985. The aim is to offer a decolonial approach to these photographs, taken at the beginning of the 20th century in North Africa. + Get the most important news from Switzerland in your inbox While the work of Rudolf Franz Lehnert and Ernst Heinrich Landrock has long been praised for its technical qualities, it has also "actively conveyed a constructed and submissive vision of the Orient", writes Photo Elysée in its press kit. Its exhibition, on view from Friday until 1 February 2026, aims to offer a "critical and introspective re-reading" of these archives. Photo Elysée has set up a scientific committee to design the exhibition. The aim is to study in particular "the political and aesthetic dimensions" of these images produced "in the context of Western expansionist ventures and representative of the Orientalist movement". + How Switzerland profited ...