[Model of a P.L.M. Locomotive]

ca. 1855

Not on view

Roman practiced several kinds of metallurgy, from goldsmithing to mirror making, which in turn contributed to his expertise in photographic chemistry. Although he was a prototypical local photographer, Roman garnered praise in Parisian photographic circles for his artisanal innovations in making paper negatives at a time when this process was quickly being supplanted by glass negatives. Roman demonstrated his technical skill with this large waxed paper negative depicting a model of a kind of locomotive manufactured in Arles beginning in 1843. Best known for its ancient ruins and romanesque churches, Arles was home to a station on the Paris-Lyon-Méditerranée (PLM) Railroad. The model locomotive cuts such a sharp profile in this oversized negative that it takes on a monumental appearance, aided by Roman’s addition of black ink on the topmost portion of the negative to isolate the machine from its surroundings. The result testifies to photography’s ability to play with size and scale, and lends support to the often repeated analogy between the locomotive and the camera, two modern inventions that dramatically expanded the parameters of space and time for nineteenth-century audiences.

Artwork Details

Overview

Signatures, Inscriptions, and Markings

Provenance

Exhibition History

Title: [Model of a P.L.M. Locomotive]
Artist: Dominique Roman (French, 1824–1911)
Date: ca. 1855
Medium: Paper negative
Dimensions: Image: 12 5/16 × 18 7/8 in. (31.2 × 48 cm)
Classification: Negatives
Credit Line: Gilman Collection, Museum Purchase, 2005
Object Number: 2005.100.892
Curatorial Department: Photographs

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5502. [Model of a P.L.M. Locomotive], Part 1

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