This rigorously researched and curated, yet aesthetically delightful, exhibition forces the visitor to reckon with Oscar Wilde’s statement that the one duty we owe to history is to rewrite it
OpenWalls Arles is an international photography award run by the digital media organisation 1854 and the British Journal of Photography. It offers a unique opp
Camille Silvy (1834–1910) National Portrait Gallery, London
Sarah holds a book – a sign of her education. On her left hand, rings are clearly visible, as she leans against the desk behind her. These photographs were taken one month after their wedding, a grand event which took place in Brighton on 14th August 1862, attracting large crowds and a flurry of media attention. Despite being one month later, in Silvy s photographs, Sarah wears her wedding dress.
Taken in Silvy s Porchester Terrace studio not long before the newlyweds travelled to Sierra Leone, these staged photographs were possibly intended to be distributed as cartes de visites, which Silvy produced for his wealthiest clients. This recently developed technique was based on the idea of taking six or eight small portraits, in several different positions and poses, on one glass negative. The sitters would then select from the results.