Place Vendôme vue de sa fenêtre

A wealthy socialite who moved in aristocratic circles, Olympe Aguado distinguished himself in photography from the stereotypical mid-century amateur enthusiast through his technical experimentation and by the quality of his work (sometimes produced in conjunction with his brother Onésipe). Aguado learned the basics of photography from Gustave Le Gray and, after briefly practicing the daguerreotype process, soon switched to paper negatives before turning to collodion on glass. A founding member of the Société française de photographie, Aguado along with Edouard Delessert developed the popular carte-de-visite format (later patented by Eugène Disdéri); he was also a pioneer in photographic enlargements. Aguado is best known for a series of orchestrated familial scenes, landscapes, and portraits, the latter produced in the brothers’ studio and apartment in the Place Vendôme. It is from the window of their apartment that this uncharacteristic view was taken. Rather than a typical architectural or city view, Aguado’s photograph instead participates in an already established tradition of views taken from photographer’s windows.