Capital, empire and photography: evidence from the photo albums of colonial companies in Angola and Mozambique during the scramble for Africa

Abstract

In the late 19th-early 20th century, Portugal entrusted the implementation of technological systems in its colonies in Angola and Mozambique to several private companies. These companies decided to preserve their activities through photography for posterity. In this article, I analyze four business albums from colonial firms, combining a semiotic methodology with concepts from the history of technology. I argue that photography, despite being advertised as an objective instrument to record reality, was extremely subjective, but that it took advantage of this alleged objectivity to create and strengthen myths, through the impact of its visuality. I also contribute to the debate on the importance of visual culture for colonial studies.

photography; engineering; history of technology; colonialism; racism