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Photographing the Dark: Nadar’s Descent into the Paris Catacombs

- October 24, 2019 in catacombs, death, nadar, ossuary, paris catacombs, Photography, subterranean, underground

Today the Paris Catacombs are illuminated by electric lights and friendly guides. But when Félix Nadar descended into this “empire of death” in the 1860s artificial lighting was still in its infancy: the pioneering photographer had to face the quandary of how to take photographs in the subterranean dark. Allison C. Meier explores Nadar’s determined efforts (which involved Bunsen batteries, mannequins, and a good deal of patience) to document the beauty and terror of this realm of the dead.

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August Strindberg’s Celestographs (1893–4)

- April 24, 2019 in abstract art, August Strindberg, Celestographs, cosmos, early photography, experimental photography, Photography, universe

In the village of Dornach in Austria, during the winter of 1893-4, the Swedish playwright August Strindberg laid out a series of photographic plates on the ground. Removing the “middle-man” of a camera, using the light-sensitive plates directly, he was attempting to capture images of the night sky above. He named the technique “celestography”, literally […]

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Photographs of (models of) the moon (1874)

- December 6, 2018 in illustrations of space, models, moon, outer space, Photography

James Nasymth's images of intricate models of the lunar surface.

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Yvette Borup Andrews: Photographing Central Asia

- January 10, 2018 in central asia, china, ethnography, expeditions, explorers, field photography, mongolia, Photography, real-life indiana jones, roy chapman andrews, tibet, visual anthropology, yvette borup andrews

Although often overshadowed by the escapades of her more famous husband (said by some to be the real-life inspiration for Indiana Jones), the photographs taken by Yvette Borup Andrews on their first expeditions through Central Asia stand today as a compelling contribution to early visual anthropology. Lydia Pyne looks at the story and impact of this unique body of images.

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Stuffed Ox, Dummy Tree, Artificial Rock: Deception in the Work of Richard and Cherry Kearton

- May 17, 2017 in bird photography, birds, cherry kearton, early wildlife photography, Featured Articles, first wildlife photographer, kearton brothers, keartons, Photography, richard kearton, spy in the wild

John Bevis on the various feats of cunning and subterfuge undertaken by the Kearton brothers — among the very first professional wildlife photographers — in their pioneering attempts to get ever closer to their subjects.

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Painted Photograph of an Unknown Man (ca. 1855–70)

- October 11, 2016 in early photography, Painting, painting over photographs, Photography

An unusual example of a painted photograph, in which the artist has left sections untouched by paint.

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Painted Photograph of an Unknown Man (ca. 1855–70)

- October 11, 2016 in early photography, Painting, painting over photographs, Photography

An unusual example of a painted photograph, in which the artist has left sections untouched by paint.

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Painted Photograph of an Unknown Man (ca. 1855–70)

- October 11, 2016 in early photography, Painting, painting over photographs, Photography

An unusual example of a painted photograph, in which the artist has left sections untouched by paint.

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Painted Photograph of an Unknown Man (ca. 1855–70)

- October 11, 2016 in early photography, Painting, painting over photographs, Photography

An unusual example of a painted photograph, in which the artist has left sections untouched by paint.

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Painted Photograph of an Unknown Man (ca. 1855–70)

- October 11, 2016 in early photography, Painting, painting over photographs, Photography

An unusual example of a painted photograph, in which the artist has left sections untouched by paint.

Comments Off on Painted Photograph of an Unknown Man (ca. 1855–70)