Information and discussion on all aspects of British photographic history

August 2010 Blog Posts (20)

Stringset Kodak Camera Survey

Dr. George Layne of Philadelphia is working on a book about the earliest cameras of George Eastman, the Stringset Kodaks. So far, he has over four hundred examples in his database, including the 47 in the collection of the National Media Museum in Bradford. He is looking for more. If you have one of these cameras, and you haven't already participated in this project, please contact Dr. Layne at GEORGELAYNE@AOL.COM.

The cameras of…

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Added by George Layne on August 30, 2010 at 1:05 — No Comments

Book: Photography and Literature

Photography and Literature assess the complete history of photography, and Brunet begins by examining how the invention of photography was shaped by written culture, both scientific and literary. As well, Brunet looks at the creation of the photo-book, the frequent personal discovery of photography by writers, and how photography and literature…

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Added by Michael Wong on August 28, 2010 at 19:06 — No Comments

Unseen family archive from 1897 on auction

Not just any family photo, but believed to be the first known image of the future Stan Laurel acting.

The photos are… Continue

Added by Michael Wong on August 28, 2010 at 18:30 — No Comments

PhotoHistory XV in 2011 and call for papers

Rochester, NY– The world’s only continuous symposium on the history of photography PhotoHistory XV, will take place at George Eastman House in Rochester, New York on October 21-23, 2011. This date represents a new two-year interval between proceedings as requested by…

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Added by Michael Pritchard on August 21, 2010 at 16:21 — No Comments

2012 Biennale of Sydney Fellowship

The Biennale of Sydney have created The Nick Waterlow OAM Curatorial

Fellowship, in conjunction with The Australia Council for the Arts. This

two year, full time fellowship will be awarded to a young curator who

will be mentored by the Artistic Director and will work with the BoS

team on the planning, administration,… Continue

Added by Michael Wong on August 20, 2010 at 11:14 — No Comments

Trivia: What is the most Oxfam has ever made from any item donated through its shops and sold at auction?

Give up?

Well, it was one of seven books donated by a gentleman at the Teignmouth branch of Oxfam, one day shortly before Christmas last year.

The book in question described the quest of two Victorian scientists in finding their long-lost brother in Fiji back in 1881. Entitled "A Trip To The Highlands of Viti Levu", this unique photo book consisted of 44 portraits of Fijians, and was written and self-published by Gerard… Continue

Added by Michael Wong on August 20, 2010 at 10:30 — 1 Comment

Exhibition featuring 1860s panoramas from Beato, Rossier etc.

The international and regional photographic elite and enthusiasts alike will soon turn their gaze and cameras on Hong Kong as the first-ever large-scale photo festival in the city, The Hong Kong Photo Festival, organised by the Hong Kong Photographic Culture Association, takes its debut from Nov. 27 to Dec. 31.… Continue

Added by Michael Wong on August 13, 2010 at 10:28 — No Comments

Beaumont Newhall: Father of Photographic History?

Well, you can be a judge of it by watching this video of this fascinating man and his contribution to the evolution of photography into a recognised art form as it is… Continue

Added by Michael Wong on August 13, 2010 at 10:04 — No Comments

National Museum of Wales purchases iconic photograph

One of the most significant images of 20th-century Wales, 'Three Generations of Welsh Miners' (1950), by American photojournalist, Eugene Smith, has been bought by the Wales National Museum.

This legendary photograph (representing past, present and possible future), for which the museum paid around £5,700 for… Continue

Added by Michael Wong on August 13, 2010 at 10:00 — No Comments

The Scot who shot Abraham Lincoln .....

.... well, not literally. That was carried out by John Wilkes Booth.

Only 119 photos of Lincoln are know to exist today. Hence, top prices are paid for them. Out of this, only 24 feature Lincoln standing in full pose. But… Continue

Added by Michael Wong on August 10, 2010 at 21:16 — No Comments

Muybridge Galore!

For all you Muybridge fans out there, there seems to be no shortage of events dedicated to this innovative and influential early pioneer of moving photography who hailed from Kingston-upon-Thames.

It kicks off… Continue

Added by Michael Wong on August 10, 2010 at 21:15 — No Comments

Levine Photography Collection Premieres

Considered by many to be among the finest photography collections in private hands, The Noel and

Harriette Levine Photography Collection, spanning over 170 years, is being presented in its first public display since it was gifted to the Israel Museum in 2008.

The Levines first embarked on the creation of what became one of the world’s most significant… Continue

Added by Michael Wong on August 10, 2010 at 21:15 — No Comments

Scott Archer - a website and future book

Writing elsewhere Marcel Safier describes a project which he and Stefan Hughes have joined forces on. The intention is to produce a biography of the neglected but important figure in photograpic history, inventor of the successful collodion photographic process Frederick Scott Archer.

Marcel states: "We became acquainted through our mutual friend, Archer enthusiast and contemporary wet plate practitioner Sean McKenna. Already fresh and interesting material has come to…

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Added by Michael Pritchard on August 7, 2010 at 9:30 — No Comments

Muybridge blog

Respected historian of cinema and pre-cinema, Stephen Herbert, has been running a Muybridge blog. The latest posting discusses a possible connection between Muybridge, the name Helios and Paris. http://ejmuybridge.wordpress.com/

Added by Michael Pritchard on August 7, 2010 at 9:30 — No Comments

Photographers' Gallery to close in the Autumn

The Photographers' Gallery, London, is to close this Autumn 2010 as construction starts on the transformation of the Gallery's building on Ramillies Street, London. The conversion by architects O'Donnell+ Tuomey will create:

Three floors of galleries
A floor dedicated to learning for all
An improved Bookshop and Print Sales space
A brand new street level Café/Bar
An accessible building with a new lift

Although the…

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Added by Michael Pritchard on August 4, 2010 at 19:35 — No Comments

Libraries and the preservation of early photography

The photo-historian Larry Schaaf writes in the The Magazine Antiques about the institutional collection and preservation of photographs within the context of the British Library and it's activities. The first paragraph is reproduced below. Click here for to see the full text (for free):…

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Added by Michael Pritchard on August 4, 2010 at 19:30 — No Comments

Points of View a popular success

The British Library's most visited temporary exhibition during 2009-10 was Points of View which attracted 108,989 visitors and surpassed, by far, the Henry VIII exhibtion. Points of View: Capturing the 19th Century in Photographs was the British Library’s first major photographic exhibition and examined the development and influence of photography from its invention in 1839 up to the…

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Added by Michael Pritchard on August 3, 2010 at 20:02 — No Comments

Appeal for samples of original unexposed Platinotype or Palladiotype papers

Are there any collectors of photographica out there with original samples of William Willis's Platinotype Company papers, in an unexposed, unprocessed condition? These were marketed during 1879-1937 in sealed tins, like baked beans, but it doesn't matter if the tin has been opened. Please contact me privately if you have something to negotiate.

The background to this request is a major research project just initiated by a leading US Museum into the conservation of historic platinotypes and…

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Added by Mike Ware on August 3, 2010 at 9:58 — No Comments

Ebay: Original 1846 Fox Talbot salt print

If your wallet has withstood the recent Government cutbacks, there is an original salt print of The Chess

Players that was issued for inclusion in the 1846 issue of the Art Union magazine for sale on ebay. Starting at £1950. The item number is 400140871767, and details can be found… Continue

Added by Michael Wong on August 2, 2010 at 22:30 — No Comments

Book: Images from the Likeness House

On a winter’s day in 1889, Tsimshian Chief Arthur Wellington Clah went to a photography studio in Victoria to have his portrait taken. “Rebekah ask if I going likeness house,” Chief Clah wrote in his diary, “So I go, to give myself likeness. Rebekah stand longside me.”