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Daguerreotype-mania
Daguerreotype-mania
HENI Talks in collaboration with the National Portrait Gallery, examines and demonstrates the introduction of the daguerreotype from 1839 that marked a revolution in portrait making.
Daguerreotype portraiture caught the public’s imagination, and the photographic studios where they were lucrative businesses and quickly sprang up around the world.
This film explores work made by the two earliest photographic portrait studios in London, set up by Richard Beard and Antoine Claudet. They opened within months of each other in 1841, and are considered the birth of portrait photography in the United Kingdom.
Time Period:
Various
Themes:
I joined the Photographs department of the National Portrait Gallery in 2000 as Assistant Curator. Some of the displays that I curated as such include Seizing an Instant: Photographs by Roger Mayne (2004), John Gay: Portraits in Print (2006), Private View: British Pop and the 60s Art Scene (2007) and Jazz in London: Photographs by Walter Hanlon (2008). In 2009 I was appointed Associate Curator for the exhibition and publication Ida Kar: Bohemian Photographer (2011) and since January 2016 my post prioritises acquisitions and the collection. I studied BA Hons Fine Art at Wimbledon School of Art (1994-8), writing my dissertation on the work of Alberto Giacometti and Germaine Richier and the concerns of Existentialism.
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08:02
Miniaturising Portraits
HENI Talks in collaboration with the National Portrait Gallery discover portrait miniatures, one of the most intimate forms of art, designed to be ‘viewed ... in hand near unto the eye’. Nicholas Hilliard’s miniature painting of Sir Kenelm Digby, Naval commander, diplomat and scientist, is a great example of how these miniature works of art, were usually painted on the reverse of a playing card, often mounted within a jewelled case that could be worn, carried in a pocket or kept for private display within the home.
09:19
The Portrait of Mai
HENI Talks in collaboration with the National Portrait Gallery, explores the importance of Sir Joshua Reynolds’ spectacular Portrait of Mai (Omai). Dr Lucy Pelzt, explains in detail, Sir Joshua Reynolds’ majestic painting which holds a pivotal place in global art history, depicting the first Polynesian to visit Britain, and is widely regarded as the finest portrait by one of Britain’s greatest artists.
6:10
A Female Gaze
HENI Talks in collaboration with the National Portrait Gallery, explores the complexities behind female self-portraiture, showing stunning examples by artist Issy Wood. Three striking works by the London based artist Issy Wood, unpacks the bold new ways of creating self portraits. Working with found images and combining different styles and techniques, her work offers new ways of understanding the self and perceptions of women in the 21st Century.
08:02
Miniaturising Portraits
HENI Talks in collaboration with the National Portrait Gallery discover portrait miniatures, one of the most intimate forms of art, designed to be ‘viewed ... in hand near unto the eye’. Nicholas Hilliard’s miniature painting of Sir Kenelm Digby, Naval commander, diplomat and scientist, is a great example of how these miniature works of art, were usually painted on the reverse of a playing card, often mounted within a jewelled case that could be worn, carried in a pocket or kept for private display within the home.
09:19
The Portrait of Mai
HENI Talks in collaboration with the National Portrait Gallery, explores the importance of Sir Joshua Reynolds’ spectacular Portrait of Mai (Omai). Dr Lucy Pelzt, explains in detail, Sir Joshua Reynolds’ majestic painting which holds a pivotal place in global art history, depicting the first Polynesian to visit Britain, and is widely regarded as the finest portrait by one of Britain’s greatest artists.
6:10
A Female Gaze
HENI Talks in collaboration with the National Portrait Gallery, explores the complexities behind female self-portraiture, showing stunning examples by artist Issy Wood. Three striking works by the London based artist Issy Wood, unpacks the bold new ways of creating self portraits. Working with found images and combining different styles and techniques, her work offers new ways of understanding the self and perceptions of women in the 21st Century.