Dog balancing on two chairs
Photograph
ca. 1861 (made)
ca. 1861 (made)
Artist/Maker | |
Place of origin |
5 Princes Gardens, exterior: terrace: poodle with clipped coat balancing on backs of two chairs. Backs of houses in Princes Gate in background.
Object details
Categories | |
Object type | |
Title | Dog balancing on two chairs (generic title) |
Materials and techniques | Albumen print from wet collodion on glass negative |
Brief description | 19thC. Hawarden C, D 353, 5 Princes Gardens, balcony, dog (poodle) balancing on two chairs, c. 1861; Hawarden C, D 353, 5 Princes Gardens, balcony, dog (poodle) balancing on two chairs, c. 1861 |
Physical description | 5 Princes Gardens, exterior: terrace: poodle with clipped coat balancing on backs of two chairs. Backs of houses in Princes Gate in background. |
Dimensions |
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Credit line | Given by Lady Clementina Tottenham |
Object history | Lady Clementina Hawarden took up photography about 1857 and became one of the most experimental and original photographers of the nineteenth century. She often used her children, husband and servants as models. The full-length looking-glass mirror which often appears in her pictures was known as a ‘psyche’ and is a visual pun on the Greek god ‘Psyche’, who represented the spiritual aspect of mankind. So the mirror and figures together in her pictures seem to represent the spiritual and material aspects of human life. |
Historical context | From departmental notes 'Clementina, Lady Hawarden (Untitled) Photographic Study (or) Study from Life (D.353) c.1861 5 Princes Gardens, exterior: terrace: poodle with clipped coat balancing on backs of two chairs. Backs of houses in Princes Gate in background. 97 x 75 mm PH 457-1968:330 Literature: Microfilm: 3.19.438 Also: ed. Alexandra Noble, The Animal in Photography 1843-1985, 1986, p.28. The Animal in Photography 1843-1985, The Photographers' Gallery, 1986. A performing poodle takes centre stage in this photograph. As in Lady Hawarden's other photographs of dogs, the spontaneity and informality of the composition enhance its instantaneity. The exposure lasted perhaps not more than a second, considering the difficulty of keeping the dog in such a precarious position. He is perfectly aligned with the balustrade and his shadow is linked with those of the chairs' |
Subject depicted | |
Bibliographic reference | Literature: Microfilm: 3.19.438 Also: ed. Alexandra Noble, The Animal in Photography 1843-1985, 1986, p.28. |
Collection | |
Accession number | 457:330-1968 |
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Record created | July 28, 2003 |
Record URL |
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