[Turkish Woman, 18 Years Old, Born in Pitesci (Romania)]
Charles Albert, vicomte d’Arnoux, who called himself Bertall, was a caricaturist, writer, and illustrator for popular novels and newspapers. His skill in styling concise literary characterizations translated readily into a career as a portrait photographer. These photographs were commissioned by the Société d’Ethnographie, a club of amateur ethnographers, for their publication Collection Anthropologique. While the impassive poses rehearse conventions favored at the time by scientists, the staging of the photographs in a domestic space gives the pictures an unusual intimacy. The slight blur created by the woman’s movement and the hue of the cyanotype process further intensify the mood.
Artwork Details
- Title: [Turkish Woman, 18 Years Old, Born in Pitesci (Romania)]
- Artist: Charles-Albert Arnoux Bertall (French, Paris 1820–1882 Paris)
- Publisher: Société d'Ethnographie
- Date: 1881
- Medium: Cyanotype from glass negative
- Dimensions: Sheet: 28.3 x 22.2 cm (11 1/8 x 8 3/4 in.)
Image: 19 x 12.7 cm (7 1/2 x 5 in.) - Classification: Photographs
- Credit Line: Purchase, Saundra B. Lane Gift, 2009
- Object Number: 2009.34
- Curatorial Department: Photographs
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