Photography on the Common
Photograph
1878 (made)
1878 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
John Thomson (1837-1921) made this photograph of a mobile outdoor portrait photographer for his publication Street Life in London (1878). The people in the pictures were arranged or posed by Thomson to form interesting compositions. However, the results were often naturalistic because the subjects and surroundings were always authentic. Thomson used the 'Woodburytype' process patented in 1864 for the images in the book, including this photograph. This was a type of photomechanical reproduction using pigmented gelatin, usually of a rich purple-brown colour. The process was complicated but remained popular until about 1900 because of the high quality and permanence of the finished images.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Title | Photography on the Common (assigned by artist) |
| Materials and techniques | Carbon print (Woodburytype) |
| Brief description | 19thC; Thomson John, Photography, Street Life in London |
| Physical description | Photograph of a photographer at work outdoors |
| Dimensions |
|
| Summary | John Thomson (1837-1921) made this photograph of a mobile outdoor portrait photographer for his publication Street Life in London (1878). The people in the pictures were arranged or posed by Thomson to form interesting compositions. However, the results were often naturalistic because the subjects and surroundings were always authentic. Thomson used the 'Woodburytype' process patented in 1864 for the images in the book, including this photograph. This was a type of photomechanical reproduction using pigmented gelatin, usually of a rich purple-brown colour. The process was complicated but remained popular until about 1900 because of the high quality and permanence of the finished images. |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | PH.323-1982 |
About this object record
Explore the Collections contains over a million catalogue records, and over half a million images. It is a working database that includes information compiled over the life of the museum. Some of our records may contain offensive and discriminatory language, or reflect outdated ideas, practice and analysis. We are committed to addressing these issues, and to review and update our records accordingly.
You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.
Suggest feedback
You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.
Suggest feedback
| Record created | January 27, 2004 |
| Record URL |
Download as: JSONIIIF Manifest
