Fétis. Julien. 26 ans, né à New York (USA). Couvreur. Anarchiste. 3/3/94.

Art Historical Context

In the late 19th century, criminologist Alphonse Bert revolutionized police identification with his anthropometric system, known as *bertillonage*. This 1894 albumen silver print from a glass negative captures Julien Fétis, a 26-year-old roofer born in New York, labeled "anarchiste" (anarchist) and dated March 3. Part of Bertillon's meticulous archive, the small portrait (10.5 x 7 cm) exemplifies the standardized mugshot format he pioneered—precise frontal and profile views paired with physical measurements—to catalog suspects amid France's turbulent era of anarchist unrest and bombings. Bertillon's technique, using glass negatives for sharp detail and albumen prints for rich tonal range, transformed photography from art into forensic science. This image, from the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Gilman Collection, reveals not just a face but a snapshot of social upheaval: Fétis, an immigrant laborer, embodies the era's fears of radical politics. Though clinical, these portraits hold artistic intrigue in their unsparing realism, bridging documentary precision with the human stories they immortalize. Today, they remind us how photography shaped modern identity and surveillance, offering a poignant glimpse into a world where a single image could define a life.

About the Artist

Alphonse Bertillon · 1853–1914

Alphonse Bertillon (1853–1914) was a pioneering French photographer whose work revolutionized forensic documentation, transforming police identification into a precise visual science. Born in Paris on April 22, 1853, he was the son of medical professor and statistician Louis-Adolphe Bertillon and the younger brother of demographer Jacques Bertillon. Lacking formal higher education after expulsion ...