The Silver Canvas : Daguerreotypes Masterpieces from the J. Paul Getty Museum

By the middle of the nineteenth century, the most common method of photography was the daguerreotype—Louis Jacques Mandé Daguerre’s miraculous invention that captured in a camera visual images on a highly polished silver surface through exposure to light. In this book are presented nearly eighty masterpieces—many never previously published—from the J. Paul Getty Museum’s extensive daguerreotype collection. In The Silver Canvas: Daguerreotype Masterpieces From The J. Paul Getty Museum, Bates Lowry And Isabel Barrett Lowry Describe Louis Jacques Mande Daguerre's Miraculous Invention Of The Daguerreotype At The Dawn Of Photography. In Nearly Eighty Examples - Many Never Previously Published - Selected From The Almost Two Thousand Daguerreotypes Included In The J. Paul Getty Museum's Comprehensive Photographs Collection, The Authors Present The Historical And Artistic Development Of The Daguerreian Process, Chronicling Over Two Decades Of European And American History And Culture. Their Narrative Uncovers Important New Information About Daguerre's Invention. Ch. 1. World Poses For The Sun -- Ch. 2. Stealing From The Mirror -- Ch. 3. Artificial Retina -- Ch. 4. Intruder In The Realm -- Ch. 5. Capturing The Moment -- Ch. 6. Nation In Transition. Bates Lowry, Isabel Barrett Lowry. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 233) And Index.

In the Getty Museum's collection are nearly two thousand daguerreotypes, including such notable examples as John Plumbe's The United States Capitol, one of the earliest known photographs of the building; an 1849 image of Edgar Allan Poe; and the documentation of the first public demonstration of ether for surgery. This beautiful book's drologue, based on document and letters, traces Daguerre's search for a way to produce a permanent and exact image of the natural world through a camera lens. A series of six essays discloses the tremendous impact of the daguerreotype on the worlds of science and art, and includes discussion of individual daguerreotypes that amplify the essay's theme.

In the Getty Museum's collection are nearly two thousand daguerreotypes, including such notable examples as John Plumbe's The United States Capitol , one of the earliest known photographs of the building; an 1849 image of Edgar Allan Poe; and the documentation of the first public demonstration of ether for surgery. This beautiful book's prologue, based on document and letters, traces Daguerre's search for a way to produce a permanent and exact image of the natural world through a camera lens. A series of six essays discloses the tremendous impact of the daguerreotype on the worlds of science and art, and includes discussion of individual daguerreotypes that amplify the essay's theme. Foreword Deborah Gribbon Preface Weston Naef Introduction Prologue The Origins of Daguerreotype The Magician of Light Fortified Vision The Dream Has Come To Pass The Secret Is Disclosed Chapter 1 The World Poses for the Sun Chapter 2 Stealing From the Mirror Chapter 3 The Artificial Retina Chapter 4 An Intruder in the Realm Chapter 5 Capturing the Moment Chapter 6 A Nation in Transition Notes Roster of Daguerreian Makers in the Getty Museum Collection Complied by Michael Hargraves Selected Bibliography Index Key items in the J. Paul Getty Museum's important collection of daguerreotypes are illustrated and described in this work, giving an overview of the Getty holdings and of the history of the daguerreotype.