ephemera

Asheville Turkey Attack

First a bear and now this. And where was McCloud?

This is certainly an ephemeral moment--a turkey perched on my porch railing, and I was there to capture it for your enjoyment.

Authenticating Historic Photographs – A New Approach

Scientists at the Getty Conservation Institute (GCI) in Los Angeles have developed a new method for authenticating historic photographs that could have broad implications for museum collections, art historians, collectors, and conservators. The secret they've revealed lies deep within the photograph itself--each chemical printing process leaves behind a series of markers that collectively can be as distinctive as a fingerprint, if you know where to find it. 

In the past, the accepted methodology for the authentication of photographs has been based on the visual or microscopic inspection of photographic images--never a foolproof process.

Now, using nondestructive X-ray fluorescence spectrometry and Fourier-transform infrared spectrometry analysis, GCI Senior Scientist Dusan Stulik, GCI researcher Art Kaplan, and photographic conservator Tram Vo have been able to successfully identify the hidden chemical signatures associated with different photographic processes and to provide a scientifically-based method for "provenancing" and authentication of a majority of 20th century photographs.

This development comes at a good time, as with the rise in digital photography, original prints made by seminal artists such as Henri Cartier-Bresson and others of his prominence have skyrocketed in price and desirability.

More than 150 different photographic processes have been tested, developed, and used since the beginning of photography. Photos produced using these processes differ in chemical composition, in internal structure, or both.  Analyzing thousands of photographs, GCI scientists found major elements related to various photographic processes such as silver, gold, platinum, iron, barium and strontium, as well as trace elements of aluminum, silicon, potassium, manganese and potassium, among others. 

But importantly, they discovered it is the precise measurement of barium and strontium – particularly when compared to the baseline of photographic papers of known provenance collected by the GCI and other researchers--that provides the best clues into the origins of prints.

Both barium and strontium are found in the baryta layer, a mineral coating which began to be incorporated into black and white photographic paper by the end of the nineteenth century and was in use by nearly all major photograph paper manufacturers until the 1970s.  Used to protect the photographic emulsion against impurities from paper, the baryta coating also helped to produce a more brilliant image. 

"We've found that photographic papers produced by different manufacturers at different times contain distinct concentrations of barium and strontium. These distinctions in the composition of photographic papers and photographs can be used to determine who made the paper, and when," explained Stulik. "This finding is significant for museum curators, collectors and conservators of photographs because a precise analysis of the baryta layer could, for instance, demonstrate that a photograph in question has been mistakenly identified as being much older than it actually is, or that a certain photographic paper was not actually available during the life of a particular photographer."

Using a multidisciplinary approach--accessing the expertise of the curator, historian and the scientist--is key to the GCI scientist's success.

Curious Ephemera - Dead Geniuses Chess Set

This curious chess set pits (dead) mathematicians vs. (dead) physicists. John Ptak subitted this item in response to my recent call for ephemera that could be used in conjunction with DarkRoastedBlend's upcoming post on the World's Most Curious Ephemera.

When John Ptak, the mind behind Ptak Science Book blog, exhibited his books at the national/annual AMS APS meetings, he used this chess set for "some play," he says. "Ivariably the discussion was about why I chose certain people for certain positions," Ptak adds.  According to John, the pieces are all made of bits and junk and stuff like that, except for the faces, which were photos/engravings. 

It's not too late to submit your "curious" ephemera items to me for inclusion in the DarkRoastedBlend post. There's still a few days left before the deadline. Be sure to submit your item and grab some of the glory (and the link love traffic that's likely to result from the exposure).

NY Times Notes Passing of Historic Image Collector

The New York Times News Service recently reported the passing of Herbert Mitchell, a Columbia University librarian, who filled his high-ceilinged Morningside Heights apartment with rare stereographs, seductive daguerreotypes, Majolica ceramics, Parian statuary, and cabinets full of 19th-century architectural books.

According to the Times' story, "In 2007, the Metropolitan Museum of Art was able to add to its photography collection the 3,866 stereographic views of New York City from the 19th and early 20th centuries that Mr. Mitchell donated that year. Most show Central Park not long after its construction. Some of them were published in the winter 2008 issue of the museum bulletin, "Creating Central Park," by Morrison H. Heckscher."

PoMo Golightly’s Ephemera Photo-Meme

Where do you keep your ephemera?

The blogger at PoMo Golightly has started a photo-meme in hopes of showcasing where her readers store their ephemera collection.

She writes, "I love the bibs and bobs of life: play tickets, Ravelry pins, favorite quotes, notes from loved ones, swatches.  As I took over our second bedroom as my crafting (words and fiber) room this summer, I felt keenly the lack of a repository for my ephemera."

It sounds like a fun project. If you're participating in PoMo's the photo-meme, link (in comments) to where you've posted the picture of your ephemera horde.

Photograph by One Good Bumblebee.

Photographer's Souvenir Images

Michael Hughes is a London-based photographer with a fun collection of souvenirs, which he's incorporated into his passion for photography. "Photography is a kind of Souvenir collection - the objects themselves are only interesting in that they obviously satisfy a universal need," he says. 

Michael says he began his series of souvenir photographs as an accident while on assignment. "The light was so bad, and I had the Loreley postcard in my pocket for my daughter; the idea was born," Michael adds. 

To see more of Michael's collection, check out his flickr set. That's where I found him. And I'm glad I did. Thanks for sharing, Michael.

Craig Goldwyn's Stereograph Collection

The Keystone Company of Meadville, Penn, is said to have made 25,000 stereocards per day at its peak. Their photographers documented a huge range of topics, but among the most profound and moving are the boxed sets of up to 300 images of World War I. 

Craig Goldwyn, a stereograph collector whom I recently interviewed, has a complete set of these photos.

According to Goldwyn, the example shown in today's post is one of the most powerful: French storming Hill Notre Dame de Lorette. Goldwyn says, "In the stereograph, one can see the French force storm the hill denuded of cover by artillery, one soldier has fallen just dead, and another can be seen crumpling."

Oil is Ephemeral

Oil well
Originally uploaded by catastrophy

It's time to use something that sustainable.

DITLOA Citizen Camera - Vernacular Photography in Real Time

During the most recent Day in the Life of Asheville (DITLOA) on April 19, the project coordinators placed disposable cameras around town and let anyone who wanted take a picture.

As part of the project, I captured these girls using the free cameras at the corner of Patton Ave. and Biltmore (at Pack Square). The results from the citizen cameras were nothing short of stunning. The entire citizen camera photostream can be found on Flickr.

DITLOA is an open-ended art project created by a group of local photographers. Their goal is to produce compelling images while documenting a day in Asheville. I recently joined the group and participated in my first DITLOA during the April 19th shoot. You can see some of the images I shot that day, including the picture used in this post, on my photoblog, A Year in Asheville.

To me, the DITLOA project captures the essence of ephemera and complements perfectly the subject matter found here and on my photoblog.

Hotel Del Coronado Photo Mystery Remains Unsolved

Two years ago, I wrote a post about a mysterious photograph believed to have been taken at the Hotel Del Coronado. To revive interest in the mystery (in hopes of solving it), I'm featuring this vintage postcard from the famous San Diego hotel's dining room. There's no mystery about this vintage dining room postcard, however. It's clearly stamped with the name of the hotel and a description--if only ephemera was always so easy to decifer.

Experts at the Border Rail Institute examined the mystery photo (which can be seen in the orginal post), and believe it was taken in one of the hotel's banquet rooms. They can't say for sure, however, if it was taken during the 1919 Railway banquet...can you?