"Femmes musulmanes syriennes, costume de ville"

albumen print

title and sign "Bonfils" imprinted

In the 1860s, Félix Bonfils opened the first professional photo studio in the region around Beirut, Lebanon. In the following years he made his mark thanks to his precise view of antique sites, landscapes, and people, especially in the Middle East. Bonfils published his pictures in large-sized photo books.
(Christoph Fuchs)

100 years earlier than Irving Penn in 1972, Bonfils also shows totally veiled people; both placed them in a studio or in a setting similar to a studio. The pictures only differ in the different shaping of the background. An undefined grey in Penn’s background increases the presence of the portrayed whereas they are placed in a park-like setting in Bonfils' picture.(Fritz Simak)