[Studio Photographer at Work]

ca. 1855
Not on view
On loan to The Met
This work of art is currently on loan to the museum.
In this evocative image, picture making takes center stage. Underneath a canopy of dark cloth, the photographer poses as if to adjust the bellows of a large-format camera. The view reflected on its ground glass would appear reversed and upside down. Viewers’ expectations are similarly overturned, because the photographer’s subject remains unseen.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: [Studio Photographer at Work]
  • Artist: Unknown
  • Date: ca. 1855
  • Medium: Salted paper print from glass negative
  • Dimensions: Image: 5 1/8 × 3 13/16 in. (13 × 9.7 cm)
    Sheet: 9 1/2 × 5 5/8 in. (24.1 × 14.3 cm)
    Mat: 14 × 11 in. (35.6 × 27.9 cm)
    Frame (approx): 15 3/4 x 12 1/2 in
  • Classification: Photographs
  • Credit Line: William L. Schaeffer Collection, Promised Gift of Jennifer and Philip Maritz, in celebration of the Museum's 150th Anniversary
  • Object Number: L.2025.29.6
  • Curatorial Department: Photographs

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