Unknown Photographer, Khadambi Asalache Giving A Poetry Reading, C-Type Print, 1990s

National Trust, 575 Wandsworth Road, London (NT 1512478)

Khadambi Asalache was a Kenya-born poet, novelist, philosopher of mathematics and British civil servant who lived at 575 Wandsworth Road. He amassed an impressive collection of furniture, homeware, postcards and photographs, and his house was acquired by the National Trust in 2010.

1

C-type, or chromogenic, printing was introduced by Kodak in 1955 and remained the most common colour photographic process until digital photography.

2

This image shows Asalache giving a poetry reading. It seems as though he might be outdoors at first glance, but wall-mounted photographs and decorative sculptures locate the picture as taken inside.

3

The suggestion of an outdoor setting is further implied by the amber-tone light resembling twilight.