Lantern View from The Ruwenzori Mountain Range: Between Science Communication, Travel Story, and Colonial Propaganda in an Illustrated Lecture Performance from 1932

This article explores the role of magic lantern performances in Belgian colonial history, and their impact on broader discussions on science communication and colonial representations. It centers on a lantern lecture that recounted a scientific expedition to the Ruwenzori mountain range in the Belgian Congo in 1932, extensively illustrated with photographic slides. Our analysis focuses on the performative strategies employed by Ganshof Van der Meersch, the lecturer, to frame his scientific discourse on the Ruwenzori mission. Drawing on visual tropes and the narrative structures of an adventuro... Mehr ...