A Dark Foreshading --On a Flash Picture: "Take us smilin' or we'll lay yer out!"

In the late nineteenth century, advances in photography technology led to an increase of photography studios specializing in affordable portraits. This print presents a humorous portrait studio session with a man and his bulldog formally posing (left). Both of their faces look remarkably alike as they sit beside each other on two red-upholstered chairs and suspiciously glance at the photographer and his camera on a tripod (right). The photographer has his head and back covered by a black cloth as he slightly bends over to look through his camera lens at the pair of sitters. The photographer's raised right hand signals the camera exposure. In the background, hanging on the wallpapered wall (to the right of a closed door) are two framed pictures: a portrait in an oval frame (left) and a larger rectangular frame filled with three rows of cabinet card portraits (center). Beneath the larger frame, there is a wooden table covered with ten blue glass bottles (containing chemicals needed for processing photographs).



Nathaniel Currier (1813–1888), who established a successful New York-based lithography firm in 1835, produced thousands of hand-colored prints in various sizes that together create a vivid panorama of mid-to-late nineteenth century American life. In 1857, Currier made James Merritt Ives (1824–1895) a business partner. People eagerly acquired Currier & Ives lithographs, such as those featuring spectacular American landscapes, rural and city views, marines, railroads, portraits, domestic life and numerous other subjects, as an inexpensive way to decorate their homes or business establishments. The firm operated until 1907. Most of the images were printed in monochrome, then hand-colored by women who worked for the company; later, many prints were printed in color.