Blogs

The rare photographic images of Florence Nightingale are so famous and familiar – iconic even – that we tend to take them for granted. But what do we actually know about them, about the circumstances in which they were made, distributed and, more importantly maybe, about the photographers who took them? Come and discover the truth behind the iconic pictures of a British legend in a Zoom talk by historian, Denis Pellerin, from Dr. Brian May’s London Stereoscopic Company.

Florence Nightingale apparently loathed having her photograph taken. Why then did she accept to sit for these images? And why did she repeatedly lie about being photographed only once, by command of the Queen?

This is the story of a quest, of a search that took Pellerin and his assistant, Rebecca, to dozens of different places and archives, both on location and online. The talk is being given for the benefit of the Florence Nightingale Museum 

The talk is £5.98. To read more and book click here: https://www.florence-nightingale.co.uk/they-mystery-of-florences-photos/ 

My article on Grubb and Parsons and their optical and engineering achievements is here; A variation of this article has appeared in the Photographica magazine of the Photographic Collectors Club of Great Britain (PCCGB). 

I have a collection of early Grubb lenses which were made in Dublin in the 1850s and 1860s and I will be publishing further material about the lenses and their impact from time to time. In the meantime I would be happy to hear from any members who have similar items or information relating to Grubb lenses.

I am also interested in hearing from other members who have an interest in or knowledge of Irish Photography from the 19th Century.

My presentation on Choosing and Using Old Leicas for the LHSA - The International Leica Society - will go out at 7.30 pm BST on Wednesday 19th August 2020.

Link here - https://lhsa.org/2020/06/free-webinar-aug-19-choosing-and-using-old-leicas-with-willian-fagan/

The Illustrated Collodion News started off as a bit of fun for a small group of wet plate collodion photographers to raise money at charitable events they attended.

This year we went a little further and produced 100 x twenty page Broadsheet newspapers for the European Collodion Weekend. Sadly cancelled, so we decided to go ahead with the printing and ship out to the attendees that had pre ordered.

I'd like to offer the remainder here as I think some of you might like the content created by contemporary wet plate collodion practitioners and artists.

Contributors:- Alex Timmermans, Joni Sternbach, John Coffer, Christian Klant, Tony Richards, Mark Osterman & France Scully Osterman, Melanie-Jane Frey, Anton Tintype, Jacqueline Roberts, Anabelle Schattens, Juri Tarkpea, Severine  Peiffer, Elizabeth Herman, Silvano Magnone, Ivory Flame, Paul Elter & Daniel Fazel,Gregg McNeill.

ALL profits go to the mental health charity MIND.

Contact me here for more info. Only 18 left.

£5 plus postage.

At an estimate of £60-100 a stereoscopic daguerreotype of Fox Talbot by Antoine Claudet could be yours. The lot is being offered by Kings Russell Auctioneers in London's Knightsbridge in an auction as lot 172 on 18 August 2020. 

The description is here: 

Antoine Claudet (French, 1797-1867), Portrait of William Fox Talbot, stereoscopic daguerreotype, mounted with photographer blindstamp to mount and label to verso No.4695 Mr.Claudet, Photographer to the Queen, 107 Regent Street, London, H.17cm W.12cm, full frame size H.25.5cm W.21.5cm

Estimate £60-100 / http://www.kingsrussell.com/index.php/component/catalogue/lots?auctionid=39&start=160

As most BPH readers will immediately see the lot is NOT a stereoscopic, NOT a daguerreotype and is NOT a portrait of William Henry Fox Talbot, but could be another William Fox Talbot. The auctioneer has been approached for more information about the attribution.

Fortunately, the auctioneer's terms of business state 'Should any Lot be sold other than specifically described in writing in terms of appearance or condition, authenticity or originality, the Buyer has 12 days from the date of sale to apply in writing for a refund of the purchase price'. 

As they say caveat emptor

The Black House was a hostel founded in the early 1970s by Herman Edwards, a charismatic Caribbean immigrant, better known to his community as Brother Herman. It aimed to provide accommodation and support for disillusioned black adolescents in Islington, London, many of whom had experienced prejudice, unemployment, and problems with the police.

Almost half a century later the Michael Hoppen Gallery has an exclusive video interview with 83 year old Colin Jones and considers the lasting impact of his iconic series of work. The Gallery also has available vintage works from The Black House series (1973-76).

See more here: https://michaelhoppen.viewingroom.com/viewing-room/10-colin-jones-the-black-house-1973-76/

The 35th Kraszna-Krausz Book Awards have announced the long and shortlisted titles. The books in the running for the 2020 Photography Book Award and Moving Image Book Award address diverse global issues related to race, justice, identity, and the construction of truth, history and memory.

Ranging from illuminating artist monographs and anthologies to in-depth critiques of photography or filmmaking, to photobooks reconstructing hidden stories, and much more, the lists reflect the Foundation’s enduring recognition of rigorous and original books that will likely have a lasting impact on their field.

Professor Elizabeth Edwards, Judge, Photography Book Award comments: “The significant themes that emerged from this year’s submissions clustered around identity, environment and the uses of history and memory. Overall the entries  demonstrate the centralityof photography as a major articulation of submerged, contested but vital histories.”

Dr Andrew Moor, Judge, Moving Image Book Award comments: “The longlist contains work that pushes at the  boundaries of the cinematic. It is a set of books that aims to reinterpret the past, reflecting how moving images mediate our lives, animate our memories and vitally record our presence.”

In lieu of an Awards Ceremony which usually takes place during Photo London, the Kraszna-Krausz Foundation has teamed up with The Photographers’ Gallery to announce the winners in September. A live stream event hosted by the Gallery will feature conversations about the two winning books. Sir Brian Pomeroy CBE, Chair of the Kraszna-Krausz Foundation said: “In this, our 35th anniversary year, the submissions have maintained an extremely high standard of image-making and authorship, carrying forward our mission to encourage and celebrate outstanding photo-books and books about the moving image. We are very pleased to be partnering with The Photographers’ Gallery in presenting the awards this year.”

Winners will receive prize money of £5,000 each. For both categories, the shortlist selected by the judging panel aims to showcase innovative and coherent bodies of work with a focus on cultural relevance for our current times and in the years to come. The judges also put precedence on each publication’s design, texture, and haptic qualities, aspects that are particularly poignant during this period of digital focus.

The Kraszna-Krausz Book Awards, first established in 1985, are open to all Moving Image and Photography books published in the previous year and available in the UK. Over 200 entries were considered this year.
The shortlisted titles are as follows:

2020 Photography Book Award (Shortlist):

La toya Ruby Frazier (Mousse Publishing & Mudam Luxembourg)
With its commentary on poverty, racial discrimination, post-industrial decline and its human costs, this work leaves a lasting historical legacy and forms a pertinent contemporary commentary about the American condition. The almost magazine-like production values add to this sense of historical ‘first draft’.
Photography, Truth and Reconciliation by Melissa Miles (Routledge)
Photography has been at the centre of the political, social and cultural processes of truth and reconciliation in response to oppressive regimes and dispossessing histories. Taking case studies from Argentina, Australia, Cambodia, Canada, and South Africa, Miles explores the dynamics through which artists have explored these compelling and difficult histories, raising questions of memory, identity and justice.
The Curious Moaning of Kenfig Burrows by Sophy Rickett (GOST Books)
Rickett’s book is a striking collection of 41 photographic works inspired by the life and work of 19th Century Welsh artist and astronomer Thereza Dillwyn Llewelyn. Through photography and text, Rickett charts her journey towards making sense of the sprawling and complex Dillwyn Llewelyn family archive.

2020 Photography Book Award (Longlist):
● The Canary and The Hammer by Lisa Barnard (MACK)
● Women War Photographers: From Lee Miller to Anja Niedringhaus by Anne-Marie Beckmann & Felicity Kom, eds. (Prestel)
● Seeing the Unseen by Harold Edgerton (Steidl co-published with the MIT Museum, Cambridge, Massachusetts)
● LaToya Ruby Frazier (Mousse Publishing / Mudam Luxembourg)
● Signs and Wonders: The Photographs of John Beasley Greene by Corey Keller (Prestel)
● The New Black Vanguard: Photography Between Art and Fashion by Antwaun Sargent (Aperture)
● Dr. Paul Wolff & Tritschler: Light and Shadow – Photographs 1920 bis 1950 by Hans-Michael Koetzle (Kehrer Verlag)
● Photography, Truth and Reconciliation by Melissa Miles (Routledge)
● The Curious Moaning of Kenfig Burrows by Sophy Rickett (GOST Books) 22 July 2020
● Where We Find Ourselves: The Photographs of Hugh Mangum, 1897–1922 by Margaret Sartor and Alex Harris, eds. (University of North Carolina Press)

This two-part online research seminar event raises questions about how archives of ‘vernacular’ photographs inform and shape our understanding of both the present and the past. During the presentations, each speaker will examine how archives are re-activated within contemporary photographic practice as potential sites of critical political significance. Whilst the starting point originates with the material culture of the archive itself, the political relationships within the selected photographic materials will be critically evaluated. These discussions aim to expose and debate the continued complexity of gender, sexuality, race, class and politics held within the photographic archive.

Part 1 – The Personal Is Still Political
17th September 2020 
Sian Macfarlane, Coventry University (30 mins)
Lizzie Thynne, Professor of Film at Sussex University (30 mins)
Chair: Caroline Molloy, Programme Leader in Fine Art and Photography at UCA Farnham

Part 2 – The Living Memory Project
24th September 2020 
Geoff Broadway, Director of the Living Memory Project (30 mins)
Caroline Molloy, Living Memory Bursary Artist in Residence (20 mins)
Harmeet Chagger-Khan, Living Memory Artist in Residence (20 mins)
Chair: Dr Nicky Bird, Reader in Contemporary Photographic Practice, Glasgow School of Art

Family Ties Network:
The Political Geographies of the Archive
Online Research Seminar
17th and 24th September 2020 1800-1930
Registration is free but you will need to book a place to receive the Zoom links for the sessions. The links will be sent out shortly before the scheduled event. Book here

Image Credit: Swimmers at Reedswood Park open air pool, early 20th Century, courtesy of Walsall Archive used in the Women of Walsall Living Memory Project by Caroline Molloy

2020 coincides with the centenary of the first woman matriculating and graduating from the University of Oxford. What better time and place could there be for celebrating women and their diverse roles in international photography?

What themes are women photographers addressing from behind the camera? To what extent have muses become collaborators in the creation of their photographic image? Do selfies show more than self-generated objects of display?
Our festival seeks to draw attention to diverse viewpoints, relationships, and concerns that inform today's photographic culture.

Photo Oxford 
16 October-16 November 2020
Visit our website to find out more. 

Image: Hands and Feet © Helen Muspratt ca. 1932

Displaced Visions: Émigré Photographers of the 20th Century was a major 2013 Jerusalem exhibition and book that reconsidered the work of nearly 100 key immigrants, focussing in particular on the earliest photographs taken by them as artists in their various new countries, exploring how this work expanded photographic practices of the time and influenced the history of the medium. 

On Sunday 2 August from 1700-1830, Nissan Perez, former Curator of Photography at the Israel Museum, Jerusalem, will give a talk about the topic of his book, as part of the 'Insiders/Outsiders' Festival. Nissan will reconsider the work and influence of key figures in modernist photography from the point of view of their status as refugees or immigrants, considering how this condition affected their vision and creativity and enhanced the development of the photographic language in general.

The session will be chaired by photographic historian and curator Colin Ford CBE and held in association with London’s Four Corners Gallery.

To see the rest of the programme clock here: https://insidersoutsidersfestival.org/free-insiders-outsiders-online-events-programme

or to book directly click here: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/displaced-visions-emigre-photographers-of-the-20th-century-tickets-112790816368

It's interesting to see that a photograph is celebrated on a new UK coin.

This week marks the centenary of the birth of Rosalind Franklin, whose Photograph 51 could be seen as one of the most significant of the 20th century, as it was key to working out the structure of DNA.

To celebrate Rosalind's centenary, it is her photograph - Photograph 51 - that appears on the new 50 pence piece in the UK.

https://www.royalmint.com/our-coins/events/rosalind-franklin/

Joanna Sassoon, Western Australia

The Norfolk Chronicle of Saturday 14 November 1857 carried the headline:- A New Discovery in Photography . “The world is indebted to Mr. W. Olley, of London, for the greatest discovery which has yet been made in photography. Mr. Olley calls it the “Patent Micro-Photographic Reflecting Process.” It consists in fixing an impression of any object placed under the microscope glass, which is afterwards transferred to paper.” This article draws the attention of its readers to a new monthly publication that was to be illustrated with photographs “exhibited as large as a crown piece”  taken using the patented process. 

Mr Olley was William Henry Olley, a Wine Merchant of 2, Brabant Court, Philpot Lane, London. The London Gazette of 25th January 1860 indicates that Olley had patented his process on 6th November 1856.

According to the Museum of Science website http://www.mhs.ox.ac.uk/collections/imu-search-page/narratives/?irn=29169&index=1 the photographs were printed by two Great Yarmouth photographers (identified by blind stamps on the prints), Henry Harmer, a solicitor who became photographer, and William Thornton Fisher, a master mariner, turned optician who also was a photographer. The subscribers listed in the publication included many citizens of Great Yarmouth including a Mr Olley and Henry R Harmer Esq. 

William Henry Olley was born in Middlesex in 1814 the son of Thomas Olley who was born in Lowestoft, Suffolk (not far from Great Yarmouth) in 1777.  WH Olley died at 138 Mildmay Road, Stoke Newington on the 13th May 1890.

Does any member of the forum have a copy of Olley’s patent that they would be willing to share a scan of? Also it is assumed that Olley had relatives in Great Yarmouth but does anybody know if Olley had any other connections with Great Yarmouth? 

Olley’s publication is available on Google Books. 

https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=pgE7DX_vbJMC&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false

When you look on the internet at the many hundreds of daguerreotype images taken by W E Kilburn what you see, apart from the famous image of the 1848 Chartist rally, is almost entirely portraits of famous and well to do clients taken at his Regent Street studios. Although the Royal Collection does have images of servants, grooms, gamekeepers. beaters etc taken outside.

So I am puzzled as to why we have three early W E Kilburn cased daguerreotype images at Erddig the National Trust property at Wrexham two of which were taken on site at Erddig and one of which is a studio image taken in London. A fourth image is a copy from an original daguerreotype lost in the copying process so not proven to be by Kilburn.

Two of the daguerreotypes in embossed leather Kilburn cases are of known family members and show them clearly on the parterre and the west front staircase. The image of the young lady on the parterre is of Victoria Yorke (ne Cust) thought to date from the mid 1840’s.

The image of the military man is of John Yorke, who at the time it was taken again in the late 1840’s was an officer in the 1st (Royal) Regiment of Dragoons which is now the Blues and Royals (Royal Horse Guards).

John Yorke would go on to the rank of general and was at the Crimea where he took part in the Charge of the Heavy Brigade that proceeded by a couple of hours the infamous Charge of the Light Brigade.

The third cased image is very faded but is of three people a young man and woman and an elderly woman in a studio setting. This may have been of Simon Yorke III and his wife Victoria ( the young lady on the parterre) and Simons mother Margaret Holland. Margaret Holland died in 1848 so again if the subjects are correct then this would have been taken in the same period as the other images noted above.

The fourth daguerreotype is probably the most interesting but the house only have a copy made in 1912 of the original daguerreotype which was, it is thought, lost at the time of the copying. This image is of the main house servants taken on the west front staircase and is stated in the house records to have been taken in 1852. As the original daguerreotype has been lost there is no provenance linking it to Kilburn.

So three cased daguerreotypes by the studio of W E Kilburn and one other image that was from an original daguerreotype.

So how do two of them come to be taken by the W E Kilburn studio at Erddig and a third possibly so when the large majority if not all of the subjects taken by Kilburn were of notable subjects and subjects with royal connections in the Kilburn studio settings in Regent Street? How could this top London photographer with a double royal warrant be tempted to go up to a remote country house just outside Wrexham?

The answer may lie with the lady on the parterre. Victoria Mary Louisa Yorke moved in royal circles. She was a god daughter of Queen Victoria and was the daughter of Sir Edward Cust the master of the royal household. Just perhaps the sort of clients to tempt the Kilburn studio to come to Erddig.

I have used the term the studio of W E Kilburn. I am not sure if Kilburn had a number of trusted assistants or if he took all of the images himself. It would appear likely give the output that he had that some assistance was needed. The only clue is an entry in Simon Yorke’s personal household accounts book for 5th November 1852 which states:

To Mr Barrett for daguerreotypes £6 - 12 -00

A copy of the invoice to which the entry relates has not been found. But it may be that Mr Barrett was part of W E Kilburn’s studio team. The payment was for more than one daguerreotype. The servants image was from 1852 but the
parterre and military man image appear earlier. So for now the mystery continues.

Read this text here: W%20E%20KILBURN.pdf

Four Corners has announced the launch of a Heritage Lottery funded project. The 3-year project will see it delve deeper into Four Corners Archive, evolving the collection into an active site for public events, study, socially-engaged practice and collaboration. Here's what is planned:

• On the Move: the history of the Half Moon Photography Workshop/Camerawork touring exhibitions, 1976-1984.
  More than 50 of these innovative, laminated touring shows were shown across the UK and beyond, in community halls, factory canteens, launderettes and other unconventional spaces. They provide unique insights into community activism, feminism, political struggle, working lives and disappearing traditions. We will research and document original material, leading to an exhibition in 2021.
   
• Research partnership with the Jo Spence Memorial Library Archive at Birkbeck.
  Jo Spence was one of the founder members of HMPW and Camerawork magazine. The project will support a research archivist to work across the Jo Spence and Four Corners archive collections.
   
• A Bengali Photography Archive of activist, family and community photographs to be developed in partnership with Swadhinata Trust and Tower Hamlets Local History Library & Archives.
   
• Exhibition on housing, squatting and homelessness in East London, to be developed with the Centre for Arts Memory and Communities, Coventry University in 2022.

Funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund, supported by a curatorial research grant from the Paul Mellon Centre. Project partners are Bishopsgate Insitute, Centre for Arts, Memory & Communities at Coventry University, Feminist Library,  Jo Spence Memorial Library at Birkbeck, Mayday Rooms, Swadhinata Trust, Tower Hamlets Local History Library & Archives.

See: https://www.fourcornersfilm.co.uk/whats-on/hidden-histories

The following links are to 3 lots of photographs which turned up as part of a 'downsizing' by one of my clients. My client is descended from Thomas Carlyle who is supposed to have annotated the Julia Margaret Cameron photograph with reference to Goethe's Mignon. There are also cartes-de-visite relating to Carlyle, by various Scottish photographers and an early photograph of Carlyle, family and Provost Swan, probably by John Patrick.

All the lots below will be offered for sale by OPUS on 23/7/2020. I am the contact for the sale jane@opus-auctions.com and I will be on the rostrum on the day. Viewing by appointment, During the Covid 19 restrictions we have been operating from the grounds of a private house so the appointment rule is firm.

Hope you enjoy the photographs. 

Links to the catalogue: 

Julia Margaret Cameron, with annotation by Thomas Carlyle -- Sale date: 23/7/2020 at OPUS

https://www.the-saleroom.com/en-gb/auction-catalogues/opusauctions/catalogue-id-opus-a10073/lot-f20f1ada-11c5-4fb4-bc77-abf40121c11c

John Patrick - Kircaldy

https://www.the-saleroom.com/en-gb/auction-catalogues/opusauctions/catalogue-id-opus-a10073/lot-55f5c6be-46d4-429a-a821-abf40121c118

Thomas Carlyle - Carte de Visite and other photography

https://www.the-saleroom.com/en-gb/auction-catalogues/opusauctions/catalogue-id-opus-a10073/lot-65ef80c6-b047-44d3-8fdb-abf40121c117

When the National Library of Scotland and National Galleries of Scotland acquired the MacKinnon Collection, it made a joint commitment to preserve it in alignment with its growing world class photographic collections and provide access for ever-changing audiences. This talk describes our current cataloguing, digitisation and engagement activities, and explores ways in which the MacKinnon Collection compliments existing strengths in the NLS and NGS photographic collections. Join curator Blake Milteer to hear more. 

Thursday, 16 July 2020
From 1700-1730
Free
Book: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/saved-for-the-nation-where-does-the-mackinnon-collection-go-from-here-tickets-110249770030

A look at London stations. During the Victorian era, competing railways built several stations in London. Since then, all stations have undergone a major renovation, but many still retain some of their original architectural features, including impressive roof extensions.

London Bridge - Inaugurated in 1836, London Bridge was the first station to be built. Located on the south bank of the Thames via the London Bridge, it was immediately added and rebuilt. The trains served south London, Kent, and Sussex.

Euston - Opened in 1837 and extended soon after by the London and Birmingham Railway and later by the London and North Western Railway. It served Birmingham, in the northwest of England and beyond. Originally designed in the style of classical architecture, the station has undergone a major renovation and little remains of the original station. The name comes from the landowners of the day, the Fitzroy family and their country house, Euston Hall.

Paddington - A Great Western Railways London service terminal was built in 1838 on Bishop's Bridge Road, Paddington. Later, in 1854, traffic increased, saying that the old terminal was inadequate and that the great Victorian engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel designed the much larger Paddington station across the road.

Fenchurch Street - The first station to be built in the city in 1841 for the London and Blackwall railways. Built in Minories, it was rebuilt in 1854 at its current location on Fenchurch Street. Served trains to Blackwall, Tilbury and Southend in Essex.

Waterloo - Opened in 1848, with several later additions, creating a jumble of platforms and buildings. Rebuilt later. Named after the nearby Waterloo bridge. Served in southwest London and in the counties.

King's Cross - Opened in 1852 for the Great Northern Railway, which serves the main east coast route to Peterborough, York and beyond. Named after a monument to George IV that was erected nearby.

Victoria - Built in 1860 and named after Queen Victoria, the station was divided into two sections and shared by four train companies serving Kent and Sussex.

Cannon Street - Built in the city in 1866 for the South Eastern Railway, which serves south-east London, Kent and East Sussex. Named after the street where it is located.

Charing Cross - Opened in 1864 at The Strand as a link to extend London Bridge services.

St Pancras (shown above right) - Built in 1866. At the time, it had the largest single span roof in the world. The jewel of Gothic architecture at the Midland Great Hotel was built next door. Named after the area in which it is located. Served trains to Midlands and East Yorkshire.

Liverpool Street - Located east of the city of London and replacing an old station in Shoreditch. Inaugurated in 1875 by the Great Eastern Railway, which served Essex and East Anglia. Named after the street where it is located.

Blackfriars - Originally called St. Paul's, it opened in 1886 to serve passengers from South London to the city. Named after the nearby St. Paul's Cathedral, and the area in which it is located.

Marylebone - Built in 1899 on Marylebone Road. One of the smallest stations in London, served Aylesbury and beyond to Manchester.

A look at London stations.

During the Victorian era, competing railways built several stations in London. Since then, all stations have undergone a major renovation, but many still retain some of their original architectural features, including impressive roof extensions.

London Bridge - Inaugurated in 1836, London Bridge was the first station to be built. Located on the south bank of the Thames via the London Bridge, it was immediately added and rebuilt. The trains served south London, Kent and Sussex.

Euston - Opened in 1837 and extended soon after by the London and Birmingham Railway and later by the London and North Western Railway. It served Birmingham, in the northwest of England and beyond. Originally designed in the style of classical architecture, the station has undergone a major renovation and little remains of the original station. The name comes from the landowners of the day, the Fitzroy family and their country house, Euston Hall.

Paddington (shown left) - A Great Western Railways London service terminal was built in 1838 on Bishop's Bridge Road, Paddington. Later, in 1854, traffic increased, saying that the old terminal was inadequate and that the great Victorian engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel designed the much larger Paddington station across the road.

Fenchurch Street - The first station to be built in the city in 1841 for the London and Blackwall railways. Built in Minories, it was rebuilt in 1854 at its current location on Fenchurch Street. Served trains to Blackwall, Tilbury and Southend in Essex.

Waterloo - Opened in 1848, with several later additions, creating a jumble of platforms and buildings. Rebuilt later. Named after the nearby Waterloo bridge. Served in southwest London and in the counties.

King's Cross - Opened in 1852 for the Great Northern Railway, which serves the main east coast route to Peterborough, York and beyond. Named after a monument to George IV that was erected nearby.

Victoria - Built in 1860 and named after Queen Victoria, the station was divided into two sections and shared by four train companies serving Kent and Sussex.

Cannon Street - Built in the city in 1866 for the South Eastern Railway, which serves south-east London, Kent and East Sussex. Named after the street where it is located.

Charing Cross - Opened in 1864 at The Strand as a link to extend London Bridge services.

St Pancras - Built in 1866. At the time, it had the largest single span roof in the world. The jewel of Gothic architecture at the Midland Great Hotel was built next door. Named after the area in which it is located. Served trains to Midlands and East Yorkshire.

Liverpool Street - Located east of the city of London and replacing an old station in Shoreditch. Inaugurated in 1875 by the Great Eastern Railway, which served Essex and East Anglia. Named after the street where it is located.

Blackfriars - Originally called St. Paul's, it opened in 1886 to serve passengers from South London to the city (free essay writers online according to this topic). Named after the nearby St. Paul's Cathedral, and the area in which it is located.

Marylebone - Built in 1899 on Marylebone Road. One of the smallest stations in London, served Aylesbury and beyond to Manchester.

Facing Britain brings together for the first time outside of the UK a particular view of British documentary photography. Long forgotten and only recently rediscovered photographers such as John Myers, Tish Murtha or Peter Mitchell who are shown alongside works by internationally photographers such as Martin Parr. The show offers an insight into the development of documentary photography in the UK, which is interwoven with that in continental Europe and North America, but also independent of them.

The documentary aspect is one of the great strengths of British photography, which is capable of depicting a part of geographical Europe in transition in a multifaceted, surprising and artistically original way. Facing Britain focuses on the period of Britain's membership of the European Union and its forerunner between 1963 until 2020. In view of the current Corona pandemic, the exhibition proves to be a break in the artistic development of an entire nation.

The photographers being exhibited include five women photographers, but missing are a number of significant photographers of colour who brought - and bring - a distinctive perspective to British documentary photography and the way in which they approached their subject matter.

Included are: John Bulmer, Rob Bremner, Thom Corbishley, Robert Darch, Anna Fox, Ken Grant, Judy Greenway, Paul Hill, David Hurn, Markéta Luskačová, Kirsty Mackay, Niall McDiarmid, Daniel Meadows, Peter Mitchel, David Moore, Tish Murtha, John Myers, Jon Nicholson, Martin Parr, Paul Reas, Simon Roberts, Dave Sinclair, Homer Sykes, Jon Tonks and others.

The exhibition describes the decline of the coal industry, the Thatcher era with the Falkland conflict, and the Brexit that divided the country. A special focus is on the 1970s and 1980s, which were influenced by David Hurn, Tish Murtha, Daniel Meadows and Martin Parr, when artistic documentary photography gained an importance worldwide. Martin Parr describes these decades as 'a formative period for British photography, in which the strength of the documentary movement really came alive'.

In Great Britain, photography was not considered an autonomous art form until the 1980s. The first major survey exhibition on British documentary photography in Great Britain did not take place until 2007 under the title How We Are: Photographing Britain at the Tate Britain, London. Subsequently, the British Council's exhibition No Such Thing As Society: Photography in Britain 1967-1987 toured the UK, Poland and Sweden from 2008 to 2010.

This late tribute to the pioneers of British documentary photography also demonstrated the difficulties of photography in Britain. British photography, with a few exceptions, had difficulty in asserting itself on the international market, not least because of its socially critical or political content and socially critical approaches, which are unmistakable in the work of Ken Grant, Tish Murtha, Homer Sykes, Paul Reas or Anna Fox.

Facing Britain presents a portrait of  Britain that is divided, unequal and interspersed with classes, but marked by deep affection, humanity and humour. The photographs speak for themselves, bear witness to artistic concepts and attitudes and convey historical contexts. They call for a view of today's United Kingdom beyond the clichés. Inequality and identity are still the key concepts that dominate the nation and define what makes the exhibition more relevant than ever. Previously virulent themes such as youth unemployment, the decline of the mining industry or protest and demonstration against the policies of Margaret Thatcher are historically illuminated in the exhibition and critically questioned by the participating photographers. Recent works by Kirsty Mackay, Paul Reas, Robert Darch or Niall McDiramid also reflect current issues on topics such as gender justice, consumer society, Brexit or migration.

Museum Goch 
Kastellstraße 9
D-47574 Goch
27 September-to 7 November, 2020
https://museum-goch.de/

Catalogue in preparation

The exhibition Facing Britain at Museum Goch is a cooperation with IKS Photo, Düsseldorf.
Curator:  Ralph Goertz

The National Stereoscopic Association's 46th convention 3D-Con is going virtual in 2020. There is a two-part session on the history of stereoscopic photography taking place between 0730-1130 (Pacific Time) which is 1530-1930 (BST) on Friday, 14 August 2020.

The public is welcome to join for a morning of scholarship from an international group of historians and registration is free at the link here: http://www.3d-con.com/registration.php

The announcement in The Chemist (March, 1851) of Frederick Scott Archer’s wet-collodion process transformed how photography was practiced professionally and by amateur photographers for much of the nineteenth century. Photography’s reach broadened socially, grew artistically and extended geographically.

Move forward to the 2000s and the wet-collodion process is, again, impacting photographic practice. It has been embraced by photographers and students who are using it for creative and artistic reasons. This has been supported by a growing number of practical workshops allowing people to experience and learn about the process.

This online symposium Don’t Press Print. De/Re-constructing the collodion process is organised by the Royal Photographic Society and the University of West of England’s Centre for Fine Print Research.  It will consist of one-day of papers, a part second day of poster presentations.

Papers and posters are sought for online symposium taking place over two days on 1 and 2 October 2020, which addresses, but is not limited to:

Reconstructing

• Historical overview of the development of the collodion process
• Its impact on photography from 1851up to the present
• Photographers and individuals associated with the process

Deconstructing

• Wet-collodion and print making today
• Contemporary practitioners: their experiences and work
• Collodion and digital hybrid models of working

Proposals

Proposals of up to 500 words are required by 10 August and should be emailed to: director@rps.org. In addition, the conference will take submissions for online posters until 1 September. Details and key dates are in this PDF download.

See more: https://rps.org/collodion