1864 ART JOURNAL
Vol. n.s. III, old series vol. ?
ver: Aug. 17, 2007
START:
NOTES:
--Italics have been retained from publications, which use them for both titles as well as emphasis. To more easily locate image titles, I have continued this italicization when titles have been rendered in all capitols or put in quotes, however italics have NOT been used when the general subject of an image is mentioned.
--Image numbers listed in articles can be either an entry number in an exhibition, or the photographer’s own image number as found on labels.
--All names have been bolded for easy location. Numbers frequently refer to the photographer’s image number, but can also refer to a number in a catalog for a show. Decide whether to bold or not if can tell.
--It is not always possible in lists of photographers to know when two separate photographers are partners or not, e.g., in a list, “Smith and Jones” sometimes alludes to two separate photographers and sometimes to one photographic company. Both names will be highlighted and indexed but a partnership may be wrongly assumed. Any information to the contrary would be appreciated.
-- Brackets [ ] are used to indicate supplied comments by the transcriber; parenthesis
( ) are used in the original sources. If the original source has used brackets, they have been transcribed as parenthesis to avoid confusion.
--“illus” means that I have the view mentioned and should be scanned and included.
--Articles by photographers about technical matters – when transcribed, only names and titles have been listed. If other names are associated with the paper they are listed as well.
--Meetings of Societies – Names of officers, members attending or referenced, dates and locations of meetings have been given. If the reports are very short or discuss photographs, then the articles have been copied; if administrative or technical in nature, they have not.
--“[Selection]” = This has been used when not all portions of a feature are copied, such as The Photographic News’ “Talk In The Studio”. If the word does not appear, then the entire feature was transcribed.
-- Some journals, e.g., The Art-Journal, cover both photographer and painting/drawing. As they frequently refer to the production of both the photographer and the painter as “pictures” it is not always possible to tell when photography is indicated. If there is doubt, it will be included but a note will be added stating that the names listed may in fact not be photographers.
--Mostly articles totally discussing technical aspects of photography, products, etc. are not transcribed unless they are part of a larger article covering photographs. When technical descriptions are too lengthy to transcribe that is noted.
--Cultural sensitivity – these are direct transcriptions of texts written in the 19th-century and reflect social comments being made at that time. Allowances must be made when reading some texts, particularly those dealing with other cultures.
1864: Art Journal, Jan. 1, vol. n.s. III, # ?, p. 30:
Stereoscopic Views in Devon, Etc.,--There is no county of England so fertile of scenery as Devonshire—which the artist loves to copy. Hills and dales, blooming orchards and sterile moors, graceful rivers and wild sea rocks—in a word, the sublime and beautiful—are in rich abundance there, together with glorious relics of the olden time. A selection of its most attractive features has been made by Mr. Frank M. Good, and the series is published by Banfield, of Ilfracombe. They are charmingly executed, taking rank among the best photographs that have yet been produced. Certainly a more agreeable series of studies has never been issued. They are chiefly sea-side views, such as the delighted tourist keeps in memory—of Lynmouth, Clovelly, and Ilfracombe. A similar series has also been produced by the same accomplished artist copied from scenery in Hampshire and Dorset. In these the best features of fair Bournemouth are necessarily prominent. The views are all thoroughly English, and present the peculiar graces of its landscape beauties with great effect.
1864: Art Journal, Feb. 1, vol. n.s. III, # ?, p. 58:
Photographs of Balmoral Castle.—Mr. Victor Delarue has recently published a series of photographic pictures, taken by Mr. S. Thompson, of this romantic royal residence; the most interesting of which, because least known, are the interior views of the state apartments, if we can call those “state” rooms which are assimilated to the apartments of hundreds of her Majesty’s faithful subjects, so unostentatious is all within them--everything wears the features of comfort and simple home enjoyment. The views are published in two sized, one adapted for albums, the other mounted for stereoscopic purposes. There are also a few prints of larger dimensions than either of the above, of the most attractive spots in the surrounding scenery; and, in addition to these, Mr. Delarue published several carte-de-visite portraits of the Prince and Princess of Wales. The whole of these photographs are very sharp and brilliant.
1864: Art Journal, Feb. 1, vol. n.s. III, # ?, p. 58:
The London Stereoscopic Company have recently added to their collections of photographs some exquisitely beautiful views of Venice of a large size, which have been coloured with the utmost skill and with genuine artistic feeling at Venice. These pictures, as we advisely entitle them, are not only very beautiful in themselves, but they also demonstrate how much may be accomplished through an alliance between photography and painting. Without a doubt, the success of the colouring in this instance will encourage other able and experienced artists to emulate the example of their Venetian brother, and to produce similar views both at home and in other countries.
1864: Art Journal, Feb. 1, vol. n.s. III, # ?, p. 58:
Stratford-On-Avon and whatever other place is in any peculiar manner associated with Shakespere, will this year be certainly regarded with even unusual interest, and consequently good photographs, whether for the stereoscope or not, which represent Stratford itself and its neighbourhood, will not fail to be in great request, and to receive a cordial welcome. Mr. Francis Bedford, the photographer to his Royal Highness the Prince of Wales, has very opportunely published a series of stereoscopic pictures, which are exactly such as will be in harmony with the public feeling; they are of the highest order of excellence as photographs, and possess all the best qualities for which Mr. Bedford’s works are justly celebrated, and they also are as varied as they are excellent. The Stratford-on-Avon group comprises seventeen pictures; there are four exterior, and as many interior views of the church, the latter showing the Shakspere monument; the House of the Poet is represented in two other pictures, and another pair are devoted to Ann Hathaway’s Cottage; the remaining pictures are views of the Room in which Shakspere was born, the Grammar School, the Guild Chapel, with the vestiges that yet remain of New Place, the High Street and Town Hall, and the Old Bridge. The other groups—kindred groups they may be styled—which Mr. Bedford has included in his series, consist of twenty-seven views of Kenilworth Castle, with five others of the Church, and of other points of especial interest in the immediate neighbourhood of the famed castle; thirty-seven views of Warwick Castle, and fifteen others in Warwick, which include the Monuments of the Beauchamp Chapel and St. Mary’s Church; twenty-one views of Guy’s Cliff; twenty-five views of Coventry; six of Charlecote; ten of Stoneleigh Abbey; twenty-seven of Leamington; fifty of Cheltenham; and six of Tewkesbury Abbey—in all 247 stereoscopic pictures, which are published by Messrs. Catherall and Prichard, of Chester, and may be obtained of the London Stereoscopic Company, and of other eminent dealers in photographs in London.
1864: Art Journal, Feb. 1, vol. n.s. III, # ?, p. 58-59:
Canadian Photographs.—Some of the best photographic pictures we ever saw have been taken in America, where the clear, bright atmosphere gives peculiar brilliancy and sharpness to the results of the process. We have just received a few specimens from Mr. Notman, of Montreal, which are excellent; two vignette subjects of ‘Yachts on the Lawrence,’ and a ‘Road Scene on the Ottawa,’—the latter would pass well for one of our pretty English green lanes. ‘Chumbly Fort, near Montreal,’ is a barren but not unpicturesque subject, and comes out vividly in the photograph. We are gratified to know that the works of our painters find their way into Canada, judging from a capital photographic copy, also by Mr. Notman, of one of Mr. Vicat Cole’s clever transcripts of English scenery. To these must be added another, and by no means the least interesting, one from a picture by a Canadian painter, Mr. R. S. Duncanson. The composition is suggested by Tennyson’s poem of the “Lotos-eater [sic],” and is highly poetical and imaginative in character, reminding us not a little of some of John Martin’s most beautiful and picturesque designs; Mr. Duncanson is evidently an artist of more than ordinary talent.
1864: Art Journal, Feb. 1, vol. n.s. III, # ?, p. 59:
A Large Coloured Photographic Copy of Mr. Calederon’s picture, ‘The British Embassy in Paris on the Day of the Massacre of St. Bartholomew,’ has been published by Messrs. McQueen, Moore & Co. As a representation of the scene painted by the artist, the photograph, as a matter of course, is a faithful reproduction, but it fails in colour, as might be expected; the heaviness inseparable from photographic printing being a barrier to the light and transparent colouring of the original painting.
1864: Art Journal, Feb. 1, vol. n.s. III, # ?, p. 59:
Reviews. [selection]
Our English Lakes, Mountains, and Waterfalls, as Seen by William Wordsworth, Photographically Illustrated. Published by A. W. Bennett, London.
Wordsworth stands at the head of that class of English writers to whom has been assigned the title of “lake Poets.” In describing the varied and numberless beauties which characterise the scenery of northern England, their imagery, and their effects on a calm, contemplative, and poetical mind, the “old man eloquent” has wondrous power. And there, too, he found incidents and histories, of a humble nature, perhaps, but not on that account less worthy of record, because they harmonized with, or formed a part of, his main subject, which he related in his own simple yet beautiful language, diversifying thus his themes, and inculcating lessons of love, wisdom, and virtue.
From the various writings of Wordsworth, the compiler has here gathered into an elegant volume such passages as especially refer to particular places in Cumberland and Westmoreland, classifying the extracts, as far as practicable, under the heads of the different lakes or other objects of interest in each locality. By this arrangement he hopes that the reader, with the assistance of Mr. Ogle’s photographs, will be able to appreciate more fully the poet’s “wonderfully true descriptions of the beauties of nature, while the tourist will have the additional pleasure of identifying with his own favourite spot any of the poet’s verses which refer especially to it.” To the description of Winandermere [sic], Esthwaite, Langdale, Rydale, Grasmere, Derwentwater, Ulleswater, &c., are added several of Wordsworth’s minor poems, such as those on flowers and on birds, with others.
The small photographic illustrations, in number thirteen, are excellent, remarkable for clearness and pictorial effect, and the localities are well selected. The volume, which is got up in the most approved “gift-book” style, is a worthy tribute to the high character of the poet and the goodness of the man.
1864: Art Journal, April 1, vol. n.s. III, # ?, p. 122:
A New Eleanor Cross.—We hear that Mr. E. Barry, the architect of the Charing Cross Hotel, is about to erect a monument, as nearly as possible the same in size and feature as the original Eleanor Cross, which stood in the village of Charing. Mr. Barry has found a most convenient site in the open space in front of the terminus, very near the exact spot on which the ancient cross stood. The height of the edifice will be nearly 70 ft. Of the ten crosses which marked the halting-places of the coffin of Queen Eleanor on the road from Grantham to Westminster Abbey, only three are now in existence, the finest being that at Waltham. Such a work as that contemplated would, doubtless, be a great ornament to the locality; but how will it harmonise, architecturally considered, with Mr. Barry’s hotel?
1864: Art Journal, April 1, vol. n.s. III, # ?, p. 122-123:
“English Scenery.”—Such is the title given to a series of stereoscopic views issued by Messrs. Catherall, of Chester, and produced by Mr. Bedford, who is second to no British photographer in the combination of artistic judgment with manipulative skill. It will be at once understood, therefore, that the series is of rare excellence; we believe none better have been published in England. Although the number even now amounts to two hundred and fifty, but few themes have been chosen; those that have appeared are limited chiefly to the midland counties, but they comprise views of Warwick Castle, Guy’s Cliff, Kenilworth, Coventry, Cheltenham, Leamington, and Stratford-on-Avon. Thus English scenery is given in every possible variety—baronial castles, venerable ruins, river banks, hills and dells, and all that makes “the country” attractive and charming. The series is indeed rich in the picturesque, while the subjects are treated so extensively that nearly every point of interest is preserved. Of Warwick there are no fewer than fifty. We have therefore a boon of magnitude in these perfect “portraitures” of famous places, for which we are grateful to the publisher and the accomplished artist.
1864: Art Journal, April 1, vol. n.s. III, # ?, p. 123:
Shakspeare Toys.—Independent of the “bust” to be issued in terra-cotta, porcelain, and bronze, and the Coventry ribbon—articles specially recommended by the Shakspeare Committee-the Athenæum, of March 5, introduces us to half a score of other novelties which are to strike the fancy on the 23rd of April next. Among them are Mr. John Leighton’s “Pack of Playing cards,” Mr. Hazlett’s Shakspearian Jest Books,” a Rev. Mr. Jephson’s photographic illustrations of the Birthplace, and Mr. Marsh’s “Reference Shakspeare.” Some of these are, no doubt, mere clap-traps of the hour, while others are designed in homage to the high soul who, three hundred years ago, was given to the world as a glory and a shining light.
1864: Art Journal, April 1, vol. n.s. III, # ?, p. 123:
Messrs. Maull and Polybank, whose photographic portraits have obtained extensive and merited renown, have issued a series of “cartes” of British artists, numbering nearly fifty, and including a large proportion of living celebrities with whose names and works the public is familiar. They are admirably executed. We may naturally suppose that in most cases the pose has been arranged by the “sitter,” who knew how best to be placed to advantage; but the manipulator must have some of the credit due to the collection, for he has skilfully varied the attitudes, so that we have a collection of portraits of the deepest interest, each being indeed a picture, the result of careful study, and of course true. Not only have we “views” of the Art-veterans, Pickersgill, Linnell, Stanfield, &c. &c., but we have before us the younger aspirants for fame, such as Calderon, Marcus Stone, and Linnell Brothers, with whose exteriors we are less acquainted.
1864: Art Journal, April 1, vol. n.s. III, # ?, p. 123:
Reviews [selection]
Lights and Shadows of New York Picture Galleries. Forty Photographs by A. A. Turner. Selected and described by William Young. Published by Sampson Low & Co., London; D. Appleton & Co., New York.
This is the most ambitious essay in photographic illustration that has yet appeared. It is a large and sumptuously bound volume, containing a long series of photographer of interesting pictures with descriptive letter-press. The selection takes a wide range, as embracing valuable examples of both ancient and modern schools, with a preference for those of the latter. If we are to accept this selection as a fair draught from the galleries of New York, there seem to be but few native or English productions in the collections, the greater number being examples of French and Belgian Art, in which the collections of new York are rich. In looking through these photographs, which are of the first order, every allowance must be made for the caprices of photography when dealing with varieties of colour. It is generally surprising to observers of nature that foliage in landscape photography should come out so many degrees below the tone of the natural object, but this is equally the case with reds, yellows, and browns, while, on the other hand, blues take an opposite direction, and reappear much lighter than in pictures or in nature. These pictures have perhaps been chosen, regard being had to these discrepancies. Whether this be so or not, the photographs are wonderfully clear and sharp, with as much graduation and variety of tone as we should expect in the pictures. In ‘Idle Dogs,’ for instance, by the veteran Verboeckhoven, every part of the plate has detail, and the balance of lights and darks seems to be maintained. In ‘The Flower Girl,’ C. C. Ingham, the American flowers that fill the basket at once pronounce the picture an American production. There is in ‘The Interrupted Wedding,’ by Fluggen, a story which tells of a bride and bridegroom with their friends assembled, when the door is thrown open by an aged man, followed by a young woman, a former victim of the bridegroom. The accusation scene is shown, and the result is according to the title. ‘The Village Postboy,’ Eastman Johnson, is by an American artist, who, we presume, has studied in France. This is followed by ‘Maternal Affection,’ by Madame Peyrol, the sister of Mademoiselle Rosa Bonheur. The title is illustrated by a cat and her kittens. The mother is extended on her side, while the blind kittens scramble about her. We can fancy the excellence of the picture from the genuine nature in the photograph. ‘The Miser alarmed,’ by Guillemin, a French artist, has, in photography, much the character of a water colour drawing. The miser, hearing the approach of some unwelcome intruder while he is counting his money, hastily rises from his seat, clutching his bags, and looking with fear towards the door. The description is very pointed. We then come to a picture by Gerome, the painter of ‘The Duel after the Masquerade’ and the ‘Ave Cæsae.’ It shows a band of Egyptian conscripts marching across the desert; the figures are small, but we can imagine the high finish with which they are worked out. In ‘The Cabaret,’ by Jules Breton, also a French artist, there are as principals a man devoted overmuch to the wine-cup, whose wife, pointing to the door, imperiously commands him to begone. The supplementary characters, the garde champetre, &c., are admirably appropriate. From the picture called ‘The Proposal,’ by Vautier, also a French artist, the photograph is extremely clear and definite. The so-called historical subjects in the selection are not numerous. Remarkable, however, among the few is ‘William the Silent—Womanly Devotion,’ representing the affectionate attendance of the wife of William of Nassau on her wounded husband after he had been shot at Antwerp. He survived, but his wife died a sacrifice to her conjugal devotion. This is a production of Penneman, the court painter of the King of Holland. ‘The Fair Housekeeper,’ David de Noter, is a beautifully clear example of photography; as also are ‘The Council of Blood,’ by Gallait, a subject from Motley’s “History of the Netherlands.” We remark also ‘The Scarlet Letter,’ E. Leutze; ‘The Bone of Contention,’ Alfred de Dreux; ‘The Last Honours to Egmont and Horn,’ Gallait; ‘The Fruit Seller,’ Van Hamme, &c. The pictures have been selected from the galleries of A. Belmont, W. P. Wright, M. O. Roberts, J. W. Wallack, A. M. Cozzens, H. S. Jacques, J. C. Force, J. J. Bryant, Esqs. &c., and they speak well for the discrimination and taste of the proprietors.
1864: Art Journal, June 1, vol. n.s. III, # ?, p. 192:
Reviews.
Photographs. Printed and published by F. Frith, Reigate.
A printed notice accompanying these pictures informs us that Mr. Frith proposes to issue to subscribers of one guinea annually, for four years, a series of fifteen photographs, “by the best artists of the day.” The first instalment is now on our table; a set of very beautiful views, selected with much judgment, and varied in character. Canterbury affords two, the fine old Christchurch Gateway, and the equally fine old Norman exterior staircase, leading, if we remember rightly, to what is now used as a grammar school. Another specimen of ancient architecture is the doorway of Barfreystone Church, Kent, one of the most striking photographs of the series. These three were photographed by Mr. Bedford. An interior view of a portion of Tintern Abbey, by Mr. Roger Fenton, though a little “foggy” in some of its details, is a forcible representation of that noble ruin. Mr. Rosling’s view of Conway Castle is brilliant and picturesque, and his Falls of the Ogwen, North Wales, has a rugged grandeur about it which is most impressive. A doorway in Riveaux Abbey, and an interior view of the same venerable ruin, by Mr. Bedford—but especially the latter, show his perfect mastery over the processes employed to produce the pictures. There are three Yorkshire ruins by Mr. Fenton—all good, but the first supremely so: the Wharfe at Bolton Bridge, the “Stepping-Stones,” Bolton Abbey, and a view on the Ribble. We have next three scenes by Mr. Rosling, in one of the most beautiful of our home counties, Surrey:--Betchworth Park, a closely-wooded kind of dell in winter-time, exquisitely manipulated; a view near Reigate, and another on the river Mole; the last beautiful in light and shade. ‘The Confessional,’ photographed by Mr. Goodman, is we presume, from a painting. The priest is sitting in a recess of richly ornamented architecture, at the side of which, and seen through some open columnar work, is a young penitent on her knees. The composition is well put together.
The photographs are about eight inches by six in size, and are carefully mounted. When then whole sixty are complete, they will form a truly acceptable series, provided they are continued as begun, of which no doubt need be entertained.
1864: Art Journal, June 1, vol. n.s. III, # ?, p. 192:
Reviews.
The Gossiping Photographer at Hastings. By F. Frith. Published by the Author, Reigate.
Hastings is as picturesque a watering-place as any to be found on the southern coast of England; and its neighbour, St. Leonard’s, is a kind of Brighton on a very small scale. At no considerable distance are two other towns, once of some importance, Rye and Winchelsea, both still possessing numerous attractive objects for the artist. From these four places, Mr. Frith has culled a series of most pleasing photographs, and accompanies the pictures with a history and description of the towns, written in a semi-comic, semi-truthful style, which may amuse some readers, even if it does not afford them much instruction. But the “gossip” is not to our taste. The residents and visitors at St. Leonard’s and Hastings are, generally, of the aristocratic order, with whom Mr. Frith’s story is not likely to find much favour, whatever his pictures may do, and these merit all the compliments we can pay them. The best literary portion is his “Ballad of the Battle of Hastings,” modeled on the style of the “Lays” of Macaulay and Aytoun. It is really a spirited composition, though occasionally marred by the defects alluded to in the prose. It required the master-mind of a Tom Hood to travesty historical facts in truly unobjectionable language. The “Gossiping Photographer” makes its appearance in a handsome form, as regards binding and type.