Exhibition on daguerreotypes

Exhibition features works from the Getty's permanent collection
alongside loans from the private collections of musician Graham Nash
and collector Paul Berg

Popularly described as "a mirror with a memory," the daguerreotype
was the first form of photography to be announced to the world in
1839 and immediately captured the imagination of the public.  The
"Daguerreotypomania" that followed may seem surprising today, as
photographs have become an omnipresent part of contemporary life.
In Focus: Daguerreotypes, on view from November 3, 2015-March 20,
2016 at the Getty Center, offers the photography enthusiast and the
general visitor alike a unique opportunity to view rare and
beautiful examples of this early photographic process.  The works in
the exhibition are drawn from the Getty Museum's exceptional
collection of more than two thousand daguerreotypes alongside loans
from the outstanding private collections of musician Graham Nash and
collector Paul Berg.

"Today, photographs can be taken, edited, and deleted within seconds
and are the principal record of our everyday lives," says Timothy
Potts, director of the J. Paul Getty Museum.  "It takes a leap of
the imagination to appreciate what they represented to the pioneer
inventors and to the public of the day.  This exhibition explores
how these first captured images--fragile, one-of-a-kind works--were
treasured, not only by those who were just discovering the
possibilities of the medium, but by those being photographed as
well."

By the mid-1840s, exposure times and costs had decreased markedly
and, as a result, daguerreotypes became more accessible to a broader
audience.  Over the years, attempts were made to enhance the
capabilities of the daguerreotype.  To make up for the deficiency of
color, many portrait daguerreotypists employed former miniature
painters to hand-paint each plate; an example of which is Portrait
of a Woman with a Mandolin (1860), where light specks of color
enhance the ornamentation on the costume.  Daguerreotypes were also
nearly impossible to reproduce, though some attempts were made,
including making the daguerreotype plate into a printing plate.
Examples of this process will be on view in the exhibition.

Inside the Portrait Studio

Daguerreotype studios were plentiful by the mid-19th century, and
each studio developed novel ways to create distinctive and personal
images for its customers.  Confined to a well-lit indoor or outdoor
location, many daguerreotypists would stage everyday scenes that
might include painted backdrops of domestic interiors and subjects
posing as if in conversation or seated at tables with everyday
props.  As it was extremely difficult to capture a smiling face
without blurring the features, most sitters wore somber expressions.
An unusual exception on view in the exhibition is Portrait of a
Father and Smiling Child (about 1855).

Customers remarked on the incredible fidelity of the silver image
and praised it as a means of preserving a loved one's presence.
Some family members--often children--passed away before they could
pose for the camera, and their likenesses were preserved in
post-mortem portraits, as in Carl Durheim's (Swiss, 1810-1890)
Postmortem Portrait of a Child (about 1852), which creates the
illusion of quiet slumber rather than death.

Prominent and well-known members of society also had their
daguerreotype portraits taken, which made their likenesses more
accessible to the public than ever before.  "The exhibition will
include daguerreotypes of the Duke of Wellington, Edgar Allen Poe,
and Queen Kalama of Hawaii," says Karen Hellman, assistant curator
of photographs in the J.  Paul Getty Museum's Department of
Photographs and curator of the exhibition.  "Because of the unique
direct positive process, we find ourselves face to face with these
historical figures."

Outside the Portrait Studio

Some of the first subjects for the daguerreotype process were
ancient monuments and far-off cityscapes that were previously
accessible only to a small, educated elite.  Some photographers
traveled long distances to capture these remote locales; the
exhibition includes images of the Parthenon in Athens, the Pantheon
in Rome, and columns in Egypt.  Others trained their lenses closer
to home, focusing on vernacular architecture or such structures of
national significance as John Plumbe Jr.'s (American, born Wales,
1809-1857) 1846 image of the United States Capitol.

Despite its inability to capture fleeting moments, the daguerreotype
nevertheless was used to document historical events.  The exhibition
includes images of parades and military festivals as well as pivotal
historical moments, such as Ezra Greenleaf Weld's (American,
1801-1874) image of the 1850 Fugitive Slave Law Convention in
Cazenovia, New York.

Because it was perceived as a faithful record, it was difficult to
elevate the daguerreotype to the status of an art form.
Nevertheless some photographers attempted to expand their studio
practice to create more artistic scenes, such as The Sands of Time
(1850-52), a still-life by Thomas Richard Williams (English,
1825-1871) that features books, glasses, an hourglass, and a human
skull. Daguerreotypes were sometimes used for scientific
experimentation, as is the case with Antoine Claudet, who used the
medium as an instrument to measure focal distance.

The exhibition also features a selection of distinctive
daguerreotype cases--wrapped in leather or decorated with oil
painting, shell inlay, and gold foil.  These elaborate cases
emphasize the care that families took in protecting these treasured
images, and the value they held from generation to generation.

In Focus: Daguerreotypes is on view November 3, 2015-March 20, 2016
at the J. Paul Getty Museum, Getty Center.  The exhibition is
curated by Karen Hellman, assistant curator of photographs in the
Getty Museum's Department of Photographs.


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