Although it’s been looking a little bleak for in-person activities in recent times, we’re hopeful that the new year will see exciting events make a welcome return. Here are a few, online and off, to keep you going over the next few months.
London
The Photographers’ Gallery Helen Levitt: In The Streetruns until 13th February at The Photographers’ Gallery. The exhibition showcases her extensive work and gives a vivid impression of life in New York during the first half of the 20th century.
The Royal Academy of Art Hélène Binet’s architectural photography is the focus of the RA’s current exhibition, which runs until 23rd January. Here you can see highlights of her work, documenting architectural treasures from all over the world.
The V&A See the latest displays in the V&A’s Photography Centre: IndustrialSublime and Known & Strange. Showing till 6th November, both feature works from the museum collections. Industrial Sublime highlights dramatic images by industrial photographer Maurice Broomfield, while Known & Strange centres on photography that embodies both the familiar and the uncanny.
Manchester
Centre for Chinese Contemporary Art Explore Manchester’s history through images and recordings selected from the CFCCA’s archives by artist in residence Hayley Suviste. Now available to experience as a soundwalk.
Liverpool
Open Eye Gallery You don’t need to leave your home to experience The New West at Liverpool’s Open Eye Gallery. Visit a digital wild west in this virtual reality exhibition.
National Museums Liverpool Visit the Museum of Liverpool this spring to see Blitzed, an exhibition of photographs and personal accounts showing the devastating impact of the blitz on the city of Liverpool.
Newcastle
Side Gallery Eruptions: A Decade of Creation is an exhibition of work by Indian transmedia artist Poulomi Basu, including her photography, film and VR. Showing until 6th February.
Bristol Museum and Art Gallery There’s still plenty of time to see the Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition in Bristol, which runs until 5th June.
Scottish National Portrait Gallery Visit before 23rd January to catch The World’s Edge, an exhibition of Thomas Joshua Cooper’s beautiful photographs of distant places.
Stills The gallery’s latest exhibition, Futureproof 2021, showcases work from recent graduates of photography degree courses around Scotland until 5th February.
Glasgow
Street Level Photoworks See powerful images of climate change from Nordic artists in the exhibition Forever Changes, which runs till 27th February.
Glasgow Museum of Modern Art Drink in the Beauty, open till 23rd January, is an exhibition looking at artists’ representations of the natural world, including rare images by Anna Atkins.
Cardiff
National Museum Cardiff See highlights from the David Hurn collection at National Museum Cardiff in Swaps. Open till 27th March.
Dublin
Gallery of Photography, Ireland Experience the photographic history of Ireland in the exhibition In Our Own Image, on display at the Printworks, Dublin Castle until 6th February 2022.
Lénia Fernandes has an M.A. in conservation and restoration from Universidade Nova de Lisboa, and is currently photograph conservator at the Nederlands Fotomuseum in Rotterdam. She previously worked at the Rijksmuseum Amsterdam and the Historisches Archiv der Stadt Köln, and as an intern at HTW-Berlin and the Image Permanence Institute. She presented her work at the 2020 round table event.
Like many conservators, I have attended more speciality online events since March 2020. Covid-19 has placed many restrictions on our lives, but it has not stopped us from expanding our professional networks. The first time that I not only attended but also presented at such an event was during the Icon Photographic Materials Group online round table, on December 10th 2020. My short presentation was titled “A Step Further in the Treatment of Mouldy Photographs on Film”.
The Nederlands Fotomuseum’s collection includes more than 42,000 colour slides by Ed van der Elsken, made between the 1950s and the 1990s, on cellulose acetate support (Fig. 1). I treated about 90% of these photographs between 2016 and 2018 using a method developed by Katrin Pietsch, lecturer in photograph conservation, University of Amsterdam (Fig. 2). Before being implemented on a larger scale, this method went through a series of trials using test materials to determine its efficiency at mitigating mould and its effect on dye stability in different types of films. As the results were positive, the focus switched to the stability of the mould-damaged emulsion layer. Unfortunately, when damage is too widespread, the object becomes unfit for wet treatment as there is a high probability of image loss (Fig. 1).
Once the project was finalised I started applying a similar approach to black and white negatives with similar issues. First, I worked with a group of around 1700 negatives by Paul Citroen, known for his connection with the Bauhaus and the Nieuwe Kunstschool in Amsterdam (Fig. 3 -4). In order to simultaneously clean various objects, I came up with custom polyester trays which allow more control over the objects’ positions during wet treatment. Many of these negatives were on a cellulose nitrate support and needed to dry in ventilated space because they emit hazardous acidic gasses that are dangerous for the objects (and, more importantly, for the people working with them). For more on this topic, see for example the guidelines in Management of Cellulose Nitrate and Cellulose Ester Film.
More recently, I treated about 640 cellulose acetate negatives by Ellen Thorbecke. Some of these negatives record images of early 1930s China that will be featured in an upcoming exhibition (Fig. 5-7). Luckily, mould was less of a prevalent issue in this collection. However, deciding which negatives could withstand treatment was less straightforward. I found two new limiting factors in this treatment methodology: the solubility of retouching media and the extent of acetate decay. It was important to approach the treatment of these objects on a case-by-case basis, and also to discuss it with the collection curators. Especially intriguing is the way in which acetate decays and, although at first not visible, hinders the stability of the emulsion layer during wet treatment (Fig. 7).
These risk factors need to be further integrated into the previously established workflow. Even after treating tens of thousands of objects, I am still occasionally surprised by their behaviour. It is therefore my responsibility to emphasise that this type of treatment should not be carried out without extensive training and acknowledgement of all risks.
Although we are living in a time when it’s become difficult to make plans, I hope Katrin and I can soon travel to the UK for the colour slide workshop originally planned for July 2020. There is nothing like an in-person workshop to share and develop new ideas. A big thank you to the Icon PhMG team for the continuous support and for bringing us all a little bit closer.
Mathilde Renauld graduated from Camberwell College in 2018 with an MA in conservation (fine art on paper). In February 2019 she joined the National Gallery of Ireland as paper conservator, working on preparing prints and drawings, and now photographs, for storage and display. Having presented at the last round table discussion, she reports on her work to conserve and promote a growing collection of photographs.
Mathilde, working at the National Gallery of Ireland.
Our collection grew from some 25 photographs in 2017 to over 300 by the close of 2020. Of these, 196 were acquired in 2019, including examples of various processes, dimensions, and eras: from 19th century albumen prints, through to 20th century silver-based and colour processes, and contemporary and oversized works.
This sudden growth led to collection care challenges. Processing new photographs can be time-consuming and material-hungry. This is exacerbated by the absence of dedicated staff and designated storage space for photographs, and by mid-2019 the incoming collection had accumulated into an unprocessed backlog.
A plan was made to process the backlog in batches. Storage of the photographs was discussed with curators to establish a new system, based on factors such as rarity, process, or handling difficulties.
The next step was a large purchase of materials including melinex sleeves, silversafe tissue, and new boxes that pass the photographic activity test. We also bought new frames, and a new stock of off-white mount board to better complement photographs.
Photographs were then processed en masse, prioritising needs and conditions as noted at acquisition. Treatment was limited to stabilisation, such as mould cleaning, consolidating emulsion, re-adhering delaminations, or tape removal. From there, re-housing was done in bulk over any spare afternoons available, from placing in sleeves to mounting and boxing. While this influx has been overwhelming, it has led to several opportunities.
An example of inappropriate mounting of a newly-acquired albumen print, which required immediate attention to prevent damage.
This focus on storage needs for photographs was fed into a survey of previously-acquired historic photographs. This enabled their re-housing too: from creating microclimate frames to re-sealing daguerreotype packages and finding better protective enclosures for cased daguerreotypes.
Individual re-housing of cased daguerreotypes, including repro image on front to minimise handling.
We have also been able to rethink our documentation. Acquisition condition forms were drafted to better inform registrars and curators on purchase, and our condition and treatment report templates have been selectively adapted to encompass the multi-layered nature of photographs. Handling training for curators, registrars, and archives staff was organised in order to further support colleagues in caring for photographs. Other cross-departmental collaborations have included research into objects, materials and treatments, as well as social media and outreach events.
Finally, we were excitingly able to show the gallery’s first ever photo exhibition, “View of Ireland”. This was followed by a major exhibition in partnership with Bank of America, “Moment in Time”.
Having established collection care foundations, we are now better equipped to care for this new part of the collection. It doesn’t look as though the acquisition drive is slowing down just yet, but we can now make longer-term plans, such as for implementing improved storage environment conditions for photographs. We are finally looking forward to preparing further regular photograph exhibitions, as well developing more staff training such as basic identification and terminology for curators and registrars.
Francesca Vantellini is an independent photograph conservator and certified conservator for the Italian Ministry of Cultural Heritage. She’s lived in Luxembourg since 2015, and works for the preservation of national cultural heritage with many public institutions. In Italy she worked as employee in a private conservation studio in Milan.
The Centre National de l‘Aaudiovisuel, or CNA, is a public cultural institution based in Luxembourg. Its core missions are the collection, conservation and enhancement of national heritage in the fields of film, sound and photography. The photography archive comprises about 500,000 objects, and in 2017 the CNA acquired a contemporary photographic collection from the private German art collector Lutz Teutloff, which is inspired by one of the institute’s historical collections: Edward Steichen’s “The Family of Man”.
In 2017, together with a team of experts from across Europe – conservators, archivists, photographers, curators, a registrar and technical staff – we started a big project to analyse and understand this collection. Its 850 artworks vary widely in size, mounting and process: we found framed colour photographs (C-prints, chromogenic prints and Polaroids), digital prints (mainly face mounted), and also silver gelatin prints, books, artworks on paper and sculptures.
The project has been an exceptional experience, with various conservation and archiving phases taking place at the same time.
Working together on multiple formats with different techniques has generated daily high-level debate about conservation treatments, especially on the following topics:
Designing a new condition report
After a few discussions, partially merging some examples, and with the help and support of printed and online resources[1], we designed a new condition report. This encompasses all material variants of the artworks and develops a common vocabulary for the description of the different techniques, alterations and problems found in the collection.
Photographs mounted with poor materials or frames, or in poor condition
In these cases we investigated the authenticity of the mountings and/or frames. According not only to the guidelines for storage, display and labelling materials of ISO 18902, but also on an ethical basis, conservators, archivists, artists and curators came together to discuss preservation issues.
In some cases we decided to eliminate frames that presented a long-term danger to the conservation of the artwork, while at others we kept the original to preserve the collector’s work and vision of his collection.
Protection and Storage
At the beginning of the project, we immediately had to define conservation priorities and design a storage facility within the CNA archives.
For this reason we asked the opinions of all the experts involved in the project, to find an affordable solution for long term storage that could fit the artworks and their mounting materials. A vestibule for acclimatising photographs (before and after moving them inside or outside the archives) is also part of the facility.
Storage conditions for artworks in the archives were chosen on the basis of their formats, and also according to their nature and composition. For example, since the inks and other materials that compose digital prints can react with other photographs, causing stains, yellowing and other chemical change, we decided to store inkjet prints separately from silver gelatin and colour prints.
Conclusion: work still in progress!
The project will continue for another two years, during which new problems and challenges are sure to arise, due for example to the format of the artwork or its technical aspects (as for lightboxes).
I would like to say many thanks to all the CNA staff involved in this project, especially Anke Reitz, curator and head of the project; and the team of colleagues with whom I have the pleasure and honor to work:
Kerstin Bartels, Silvia Berselli, Isabel Dimas, Anne Jüster; and for digitization, Sven Erik Klein.
Contacts:
Francesca Vantellini, FV Conservation Sàrl-s, Bascharage, G.D. of Luxembourg
[1] In particular: http://www.dp3project.org (Digital print preservation portal); Twentieth Century Colour Photographs: The Complete Guide to Processes, Identification & Preservation, Sylvie Pénichon Thames & Hudson, 2013; The Digital Print: Identification and Preservation, Martin C. Jürgens; 2009
Rahul Sharma presented his research into the use of multimodal imaging and machine learning at the last Icon PhMG round table discussion. He is a graduate student from the University of Amsterdam’s conservation and restoration advanced professional programme, specialising in photograph conservation.
Artificial intelligence seems to be the exclusive preserve of those who already possess computer intelligence; or so I thought. Having used machine learning in my work for the last year, while having no particular skill with computers, I am excited to report that all it requires is some patience, a deft hand with a mouse or touchpad, and some free software.
An Example of Multimodal Imaging. Detail from photo, in (clockwise top left) visible, UV induced visible luminescence, UV false colour, and IR false colour.
I spent last year immersed in Japanese hand-coloured albumen prints to investigate how they were coloured, and how this affected their stability. I had barely finished imaging them when the covid-19 lockdowns began. This is where machine learning comes in. But first, a note on imaging.
Multimodal imaging is the easiest non-invasive way to investigate colour. An object is not only photographed in visible light, but also in other modes such as UV and IR reflectance; in these modes the camera captures just reflected UV and IR. In addition, I also captured induced luminescence in visible light as well as IR. Here UV radiation causes luminescence (fluorescence) in visible light; and visible light causes luminescence in IR. I also imaged the photographs in coaxial illumination, which is generally used to photograph Daguerrotype plates in the negative.
The aim of all these imaging modalities was to gain an idea of the response of the colours across various spectra. Based on this, conjectures can be made about the composition of the colourant [1]. This is, of course, a precursor to actual technical analysis with XRF or SERS, etc.
How does one cope with large sets of images in various modes? Enter trainable WEKA segmentation [2] in Image J. WEKA is an open source plugin for Image J, which is itself open source; it makes machine learning as easy as highlighting the area you are interested in and pressing “train classifier”.
The WEKA classifier interface
Using WEKA allows one to select a feature, train the algorithm, and run as many photos as one wants through it. The algorithm does the heavy lifting and picks out the features you selected. By default it is set up to identify colours, but different variants exist in the segmentation tools of Image J.
A combination of WEKA and multimodal imaging allowed me to rapidly identify patterns of colour distribution across multiple photographs; so that rather than facing the drudgery of mapping colours, I could study how they behaved.
The image begs a question: why is the green colour so matte, in comparison to the rest of the areas?
The algorithms are not limited to mapping colours in one photo. They can also be used to find patterns of colour distribution across multiple images. For example, here are the colour distributions for tinting dyes in the paper present over the multiple images.
Left: Source images in IR False Colour. Right: Segmentation Output for tinting dyes
Of course, one need not be limited to just a small set of photographs. If the input images are calibrated with a white balance and a white level (having a colour reference in the frame helps), the algorithms will be able to process and segment the images. This is of particular use when dealing with large collections, such as those held by institutions, or with images scraped from the web. The only limit is your computer’s processing power, and the time at hand to train the algorithms.
Here are some brief instructions for using WEKA, from the appendices of my thesis Daubing Titipu: Colourants in Japanese Albumen Prints [3]
To create the segmentation, the following process was used.
● Open TIFF image in Image J and convert to RGB by image>colour>stack to RGB. (TIFF not necessary, just be consistent with format).
● Open trainable WEKA segmentation by plugins>segmentation>trainable WEKA segmentation.
● Select areas belonging to various classes by highlighting and adding to classes. Multiple classes can be created.
● Train the algorithm and verify the result by checking the log files. The error should be below 1%. If more, retrain.
● Create probability maps, and apply the model to other images by clicking apply Model
● Save finished probability maps.
The finished maps are grayscale TIFF multichannel images, with each channel belonging to a class. These should be separated by using image>stack>stack to images; and saved; and ideally thresholded by image>adjust>threshold
[1] For a better treatment on this, refer to: Aldrovandi, Alfredo, Ezio Buzzegoli, Annette Keller, and Diane Kunzelman. “Investigation of Painted Surfaces with a Reflected UV False Color Technique.” 8th international conference on “Non-Destructive Investigations and Microanalysis for the Diagnostics and Conservation of the Cultural and Environmental Heritage”: Lecce (Italy), 15-19 May 2005, 2005, 1–19.
[2] Arganda-Carreras, Ignacio, Verena Kaynig, Curtis Rueden, Kevin W Eliceiri, Johannes Schindelin, Albert Cardona, H Sebastian Seung, and Harvard John A Paulson. “Trainable Weka Segmentation: A Machine Learning Tool for Microscopy Pixel Classification.” Bioinformatics 33, no. 15 (2017): 2424–26. https://doi.org/10.1093/bioinformatics/btx180.
[3] Sharma, Rahul. “Daubing Titipu: Colorants in Japanese Albumen Prints”. University of Amsterdam Conservation and Restoration 2020.
Rather than dwelling on everything that’s happened this year, let’s look forward to 2021 and to experiencing things in person again! Here is a snapshot of photographic goings-on over the next few months, some in real life, many virtual, in Britain and Ireland.
The Photographer’s gallery in London is showing the work of Evgenia Arbugaeva, which conveys both the magical atmosphere of evocative landscapes and an honest depiction of the hardships of living in the Russian Arctic. The exhibition runs until 21st February 2021, but if you can’t make it the gallery’s “TPG Talks”podcast series features several interviews with Evgenia, through which she recounts the stories behind her images.
Take a virtual trip to the Pitt Rivers Museum in Oxford and see the fantastic content they have for their past exhibition Blow up in Bissau. This exhibition looked at the re-building of the National Ethnographic Museum of Guinea-Bissau after its destruction during the civil war of 1998-9. 450 sheets of contact prints depicting the museum and its collections prior to the damage helped return the institution to its former self. Although this exhibition is now closed, the PRM’s website offers a detailed review including video footage and a downloadable PDF of the exhibition brochure.
Missed Photo Oxford Festival 2020? You can still watch many of the online talks through the festival website, including a discussion on the work of Anna Atkins.
Although temporarily closed, Birmingham Museum and Art gallery will be showing Wildlife Photographer of the Year until 7th February 2021, so fingers crossed you’ll still able to catch it!
Photographers can enter the Bristol Photo Festival RWA Photography Open Exhibition, which will accept submissions from 11th January till 22nd February 2021. The photo festival will then run citywide from the 27th March – 6th June 2021.
The Royal Photographic Society will exhibit the work of contemporary photographers in the upcoming International Photography Exhibition 162. This collection of photographs showcases current practice and subject matter and will be on display from 23rd January till 5th April 2021.
Although the Cardiff based Ffotogallery is closed until next year, you can still take a virtual tour of their new exhibition Many Voices, One Nation 2 on their website.
Also in Edinburgh, the Stills photography gallery will show their next exhibition from 12th January 2021, focusing on the work of Iman Tajik. Expect a collection of performance-based photographs with a focus on migration and diaspora, set against the backdrop of the Scottish highlands.
The National Gallery of Ireland in Dublin has plenty to offer on its website, including this article on the power of photography, related to the (sadly) just past exhibition Moments in Time. You can still get a taste of the exhibition through this podcast series.
From the 30th January, the Gallery of Photography Ireland will display a retrospective of Irish documentary photographer Tony O’shea, whose work captured the lives of “ordinary people”.
The Mac in Belfast is showing an exhibition by French artist Frederic Huska called The Black Monolith of the Flaneur until the 14th February 2021.
The PhMG committee hopes there is still some merriment in all of your Christmases, and looks forward to seeing you in the new year!
Stephanie Jamieson joined the Royal Photographic Society and Centre for Fine Print Research for a two days of talks on the practice and appreciation of collodion photography. Here she reports from the second day of the conference.
Stephanie is communications officer for the Icon PhMG committee
The second day of the conference included another wide range of topics. It began with France Scully, who gave a captivating talk about her experience with collodion. She and her husband Mark Osterman taught the collodion process to Sally Mann, who went on to develop her own practice and became particularly interested in the formation of ‘artefacts’: imperfections on the plates that create fascinating elements in the final print. France recounted how Sally would periodically send her and Mark folded collodion prints with notes written on the back. She went on to talk about the collodion process in her own practice and the inspiration she found in Sally’s work, particularly the ‘Proud Flesh’ series.
Artist Erin Solomons spoke next, on ‘the chemistry of trauma: practical research inspired by photographs from the American civil war’. Erin’s practice is influenced by images taken by prominent civil war photographers including Matthew Brady and Alexander Gardner. Erin began with photographic practice during the conflict and how the speed of the collodion process was at odds with that of contemporary warfare. This led to life in camp and the aftermath of battle becoming typical subjects, while the authenticity of many images was called into question, particularly concerning the placement of bodies. This alteration to the genuine narrative disconnects lived experience from photographic evidence; in response Solomon focussed on the trauma suffered by individual soldiers, capturing images while being dragged through a forest and adding her bodily fluids to the developing chemicals.
Photographer Rob Ball followed on from Erin with ‘dreamlands: tintypes at the edge’. Through his photographic projects “Dreamlands, Coney Island and The Itinerant” Rob uses the tintype process to connect past and present imagery of the seaside. His images are beautiful memories of coastal history from both the distant and more recent pasts.
Paul Elter was next to speak with his captivating talk on ‘travel and the mobile darkroom- silver, salt and the arctic sea’. Paul began by commenting on the importance of original ‘artefacts’ – the imperfections on the plate – that show the history of the object and the difficulty of the process through which it is made. He went on to list the critical elements of the collodion process: purity, consistency, temperature and humidity. Collodion can be greatly affected by the water quality, changing the character of the final print. Paul explained that exposure is very difficult because collodion is sensitive to blue light. Pouring collodion outdoors can introduce contaminants, which appear on the final print as white lines known as ‘comets’. Paul also spoke about the photographer Jack Lowe, who has created a modern version of Fenton’s mobile darkroom to help him document all the RNLI stations around the UK in collodion. Paul went on to talk about his own photographic journey across Canada’s Yukon and Northwest Territories in search of the midnight sun. The presentation concluded with an incredible collodion image of Paul’s wife, lit by the midnight sun on the edge of the Arctic Ocean.
Christian Klant’s presentation showcased more wonderful products of the collodion process. Christian is a photographer who specialises in wet plate collodion, and through his presentation ‘wet plate collodion: then and now – observations of a practitioner’, he illustrated how the collodion process can produce images of incredible clarity, which can be enlarged to an impressive size without loss of definition. Christian also showed some of his carbon prints from collodion negatives.
We then heard from photographer Steve Le Grys, who spoke about his experience working with collodion in his presentation ‘an accidental journey’. Steve started his career as a camera operator for a London book printer before studying photography at the University of East London. He also talked about the ‘Little John’ gallery camera and how it was used for imaging artworks.
Niamh Fahy, artist and research associate at the Centre for Fine Print Research, spoke next about the ‘liquid intelligence’ of the collodion process and how through ‘glitch aesthetics’ – another term for artefacts – the formal nature of this photographic process is interrupted and creates an alternative narrative to that of the original image being represented. Her talk ‘interpreting interruption’ beautifully illustrated her current research.
She was followed by Wilson Young, a photographer and artist from Hong Kong who is currently studying in Australia. He used the Hong Kong-based ‘Palaeontology Guide’ exhibition as the basis for his ‘images – objects – being’ presentation, and explored how contemporary photographers are combining modern practice with historical techniques such as the tintype.
The conference concluded with Jo Gane, whose ‘contemporary practice with wet collodion: time-travel and public engagement through the performance of processes’ showcased her use of historical processes to ‘time-travel’ through photography. Her ‘Birmingham’ project involved re-photographing sites from historical images of the city from the Warwickshire Photographic Survey collection at the Library of Birmingham. When processing her photographs she sometimes used water from ditches and streams near the location to add to the sense of place. She describes the damaged emulsion in her images as a metaphor for the Birmingham cityscape, representing buildings that have now been demolished. Another of Jo’s projects was ‘The Elephant Trap’, a collaborative piece with Jason Scott Tilley that involved building a camera and portable darkroom – the elephant trap – in the style of Frederic Scott Archer, to take photographs of the community in Willenhall, Coventry.
Stephanie’s end of year round-up will be along soon, looking back at a year of unique challenges and opportunities for everyone in the profession.
Stephanie Jamieson joined the Royal Photographic Society and Centre for Fine Print Research for two days of talks on the practice and appreciation of collodion photography. Here she reports from the first day of the conference.
Stephanie is communications officer for the Icon PhMG
‘Don’t Press Print’ was an impressive demonstration of online knowledge sharing, and of how successful a virtual conference can be. Although two days spent looking at a screen may sound daunting, the diverting content and frequent breaks for questions made the experience a pleasant one. The first day began with an introduction from Dr. Michael Pritchard, director of education and public affairs at the Royal Photographic Society, and Frank Menger, senior research fellow at the centre for fine print research, University of the West of England.
Introductions were followed by a talk from Mark Osterman, the day’s keynote speaker, who discussed ‘collodion as a medium’. This was a wonderful way of introducing the process and gave delegates a chance to see inside the studio and understand the practice of Scully and Osterman, the photographic studio that Mark and his wife opened in France in 1991. Mark talked about the intricacies of working with collodion, as well as his own methods, which include using aluminium foil to mimic the effect of smoke in the final image. He also discussed using collodion when abroad, and the highs and lows of travelling with this cumbersome yet rewarding photographic equipment.
Adriene Lundgren and Rachel Wetzel discussed the history of the transition from the wet plate to dry plate collodion process in ‘archer with a shelf life: dry plate collodion and its use in the United States’. They explained how the dry plate was made, examined the development of the process, and discussed the key figures in its history.
The following talk ‘light and shadows reversed – George Washington Wilson’s guide to the collodion process’ was given by Ashleigh Black, whose PhD research at the University of Aberdeen delves deep into the work of this well-known 19th century photographer. George Washington Wilson’s photographs immortalised many parts of Scotland in the form of postcards and cartes-de-visite.
Zsuzsanna Szegedy-Maszak was next, presenting ‘the recently discovered notebook of Miklós Barabás: a case study of how photographers in eastern Europe acquired information on the wet-collodion process’. Zsuzsanna, who is head of the Budapest Gallery, spoke about the content of these notebooks, in which collodion recipes for creating various types of photographs are recorded. Zsuzsanna’s talk then explained how the notebook and similar artefacts provide a greater understanding of the movement of photographic knowledge through eastern Europe.
Tony Richards, photographer at the John Rylands Library, was the last speaker of the morning with ‘the digitype and the inter-positive. A new collodion narrative’. Tony looked at the emergence of hybrid methods, in particular the merging of collodion practice with digital methodologies.
The afternoon of the first day began with artist Ian Chamberlain. Ian’s talk ‘altered states; the use of collodion as part of an inter-disciplinary approach’ illustrated his use of the collodion process to inform his existing practice. Ian uses drawing and etching to record architectural forms, striving to represent technological achievements from the past and present.
This talk was followed by Chihoko Ando’s presentation on the collodion process in Japan. There was a belief in Japanese culture that a photograph could preserve the link between life and death. Chihoko explained how the daguerreotype was the first form of photography to be introduced to Japan, followed by collodion and the ambrotype in the 1850s and 60s, which arrived with western merchants and travellers. When civil war broke out in the mid-19th century it became customary to commission studio portraits of warriors in traditional dress as keepsakes.
The next talk was from Sureya Mukherjee on the ‘rebirth of the picture-perfect collodion: the new Indian story’. Sureya is a researcher, art educator and co-founder of the Studio Goppo photographic research centre. Her presentation was beautifully illustrated with action shots of the work being produced at Studio Goppo, giving a fascinating insight into the alternative photographic community in India. Sureya explained how the Indian climate requires adjustments to the collodion practice.
Following Sureya was Dr Bill Nieberding, who discussed the phenomenon of aura in collodion images. Bill described aura as a category of experience entwined with the viewer’s gaze, and spoke about how exposure time can have an effect on this visual experience. He also spoke about the inhuman quality of the camera, which records our likeness without ever returning our gaze. This research was illustrated by wet plate collodion portraits, still-lives and landscapes from Bill’s ‘Portrait of East Texas’.
The first day finished with Alan Hodgson, image physicist and president of the RPS, who spoke about the collodion halftone process and its importance to the evolution of other processes. Collodion halftone became popular for reproducing artwork in publications, as image quality was perfected for use in fine art reproduction by the late 1800s. Collodion halftone was superseded by the quicker and safer gelatine halftone.
Stephanie’s report on the second day of the conference will appear next week.
Icon PhMG treasurer Jordan Megyery reflects on an intense and rewarding year at The National Archives and Tate.
For the last year I have been an Icon intern in photograph conservation and audience engagement. The internship was generously sponsored by the Clare Hampson Fund, and I worked at The National Archives and Tate under supervisor Jacqueline Moon, who is now conservation manager for paper and photographs at Tate.
As well as helping me learn to identify and conserve black and white and colour photographs, the internship showed me that many other skills are required for a successful conservation career in a cultural institution. Teamwork and communication are important, not only to convey ideas and approach conservation issues but also to work within a department, collaborate across a large organisation and speak to public audiences. As I learned while working on a film survey at The National Archives, good organisation and time management is key to delivering a successful project while working to a deadline. Proficient IT skills are also a great advantage, enabling me to use museum management systems and other IT programmes effectively; and, of course, a conservator should think critically, be meticulous, and pay close attention to detail.
Presenting my internship poster at Icon 2019, Belfast
Building knowledge: identification and treatment of black and white photographs at The National Archives
I decided to apply for the Icon internship in order to bring together my MA in the conservation of works of art on paper and my BA in fine art photography. I had some previous knowledge of how photographs are made, but little of how they might be conserved. I was excited to find out what this new specialism would involve.
I spent my first few weeks learning to identify historical black and white prints; distinguishing between the distinctive yellowing of albumen prints, the mirrored surfaces of silver gelatin prints, and the rich, matt surfaces of platinum prints. As I soon came to understand, the multitude of experimental processes, coatings and toning techniques used in early photography can make the process of identification tricky, even for the well-trained eye. Nevertheless, as the weeks and months went on, I began to gain confidence in my ability to differentiate between these nuances.
I studied common causes of deterioration. The fading, mirroring and yellowing of these images, which for me had always brought a sense of nostalgia and fascination, are in fact signs of poor processing, or the consequences of uncontrolled environmental conditions and proximity to non-archival materials and housings.
As my knowledge grew, I began to test some basic conservation techniques including surface cleaning and repair. I then worked on two collections at The National Archives: photographs of historic ships and atmospheric images of dockyards, some of which were panoramas that had been folded into bound volumes. These were very sooty, and some were torn and creased. I cleaned and stabilised them so they could be safely accessed by staff and readers. To my surprise, many of the techniques I had learned in the treatment of paper objects were transferable to photographs; however, I needed to understand the complex, multi-layered material chemistry of each process in order to carry out safe and effective treatments.
Cleaning an album of dockyard photographs at The National Archives
Degrading film and a volunteer survey
I was asked to work on a group of about 40 tagged paper files containing degrading cellulose nitrate X-rays. This allowed me to carry out in-depth research into the degradation mechanisms of nitrate film materials, to separate film stuck to paper documents, and make repairs to very brittle paper files.
I also tried out a more challenging conservation treatment on cellulose acetate films, using different solvent combinations to separate the degraded film base from the image layer. This was both tricky and fun, and I’d like to investigate the process further before using it on collection materials.
I jointly led a volunteer survey of the film collection in order to investigate its scale and location, and – most importantly – its condition. Jacqueline and I decided to carry out a pilot survey to make sure that we were asking the right questions and that the volunteers were clear about the observations they needed to make. I then built the full survey in The National Archives’ online conservation database, trained and managed volunteers, and liaised with departments across the organisation. More than 6000 individual pieces of film were surveyed, helping to inform how the collection will be cared for in future; the survey data is now being used on a new volunteer project to rehouse the film collection, and it is extremely rewarding to have been part of a project that has helped to better understand and care for these historical records. This project taught me how to collaborate and communicate with teams outside my own specialism and disseminate knowledge to non-conservation professionals, and underlined the importance of IT skills when working on large scale projects.
Moving to Tate: colour photographs and a busy exhibitions programme
I was lucky enough to be able to follow Jacqueline to the paper and photograph conservation department at Tate for the second half of my internship. This was an unexpected change, but one that offered a fantastic opportunity to broaden my experience.
I worked closely with Tate’s photograph conservator, Laurence Martin, to complete a number of treatments and projects on black and white and colour pictures. I assessed and treated 13 mixed black and white prints from a large bequest from collector Barbara Lloyd; worked on a number of dye-destruction and chromogenic photographic prints by Christopher Steele-Perkins to expand my knowledge in the complex field of colour photography; and conserved a collection of over 100 carbon prints by Henry Dixon.
Working on a collection of carbon prints by Henry Dixon
This offered me the opportunity to hone my practical skills while experiencing the different approaches taken in caring for photographs in a museum or gallery context, as opposed to an archival collection. For example, it is estimated that The National Archives holds more than eight million photographs, so a preventive and minimal approach to conservation is practical in most cases. Tate, by contrast, has a focus on exhibiting work, and the complex conservation issues that can arise from the use of experimental artistic techniques mean that more time and resources may be required to process individual works.
I worked with the acquisitions team to create condition reports and risk assessments for photographs and works on paper before they were brought into the collection. This allowed me to think critically about storage, display and conservation issues relating to a variety of materials and processes. I also carried out treatments on newly-acquired paper artworks to prepare them for exhibition. One – a collagraph print about three metres across – was particularly interesting, as I had neither worked on a collagraph before, nor any object of that size. I also spent a few days helping the exhibitions team install the Blake exhibition at Tate Britain and deinstall the Gonchorova exhibition at Tate Modern; I worked with couriers from external museums and other exhibition staff to condition check about 60 photographs and paper works before and after the exhibition. The process is fast-paced and requires collaboration between curators, conservators, art handlers and couriers, and it was exciting to see the work that goes into preparing a busy schedule of exhibitions, and how a conservator’s role fits into this.
Working in the conservation departments of two large organisations was a wonderful opportunity for me to experience how different cultural institutions operate, and to get a sense of what my career might look like in the future.
Engaging audiences
I was encouraged to share my work with a range of different audiences at both The National Archives and Tate. The most significant for me was the opportunity to present a paper, which I wrote with Jacqueline about the film project at The National Archives, at the Icon 2019 Triennial Conference in Belfast. I presented to an audience of about 60 people in the main auditorium, which was a daunting yet exciting prospect. As my first presentation to a large audience of my peers, this was a very proud achievement and a great opportunity to share the work that Jacqueline and I had been doing. I also gave regular short presentations about my work to groups of visitors who were touring the conservation studios; I taught groups of fifth year students how to repair photographs as part of a Kids in Museums day at The National Archives, and published a blog about some experimental work I had been carrying out on film materials.
Presenting the joint paper at Icon 19, Belfast
Additional opportunities
As part of my internship I also got to spend three days with photograph conservator Susie Clarke, learning about the conservation of glass plate negatives. Susie is a specialist in this field, and it was inspiring to be personally taught in her studio. Susie also organised a day at the York Glaziers Trust for me to gain an insight into the principles of glass conservation; I had little previous knowledge, and it was fascinating to see their studio and huge ongoing project on York Minster’s stained glass windows.
In between my transition from The National Archives to Tate, I also got to spend some time at the British Film Institute in their conservation and special collections departments. Having worked with film materials at The National Archives it was fascinating to see how feature films are cared for and conserved on such a large scale. The special collections department has an intriguing mixed collection of materials relating to feature films including scripts, film stills and posters, and I was fortunate enough to be able to work on some of these during my time there.
I was also encouraged to keep in touch with my fellow Icon interns across the UK. I organised a reciprocal visit with Arielle Juler who is at the National Trust for Scotland, and I got to catch up with other interns at the Icon 2019 Triennial Conference. I recently went to the IIC’s Student and Emerging Conservators conference in Cologne to meet other conservators starting their careers and to get an international view of the conservation field. It was inspiring to be around so many passionate people who are eager to make a positive impact on heritage collections internationally.
Condition checking a Mauri skirt with Arielle at Newhailes House
Final words
I have had a fantastic year, and I believe the internship has given me the skills and experience needed to transition from being a conservation graduate to my first employed role. I would like to thank the Clare Hampson Fund for their generosity in supporting this Icon internship and for giving me the fantastic opportunity to specialise in Photograph Conservation. I would also like to thank Icon, my Icon intern advisor Lorna Calcutt, The National Archives and Tate, Susie Clark, The York Glaziers Trust, Kieron Webb and Claire Smith from The British Film Institute; and of course my supervisor, Jacqueline Moon, for making it all possible!
Catlin Langford is curatorial fellow in photography at the Victoria and Albert Museum, supported by The Bern Schwartz Family Foundation.
On 29th November 2019, the photographic materials group held its third round table event at the Dana Research Centre and Library in South Kensington. The round table encourages emerging and established photographic conservators to share their recent research. The five-minute presentations covered a range of topics, including historical photographic processes in design registers in The National Archives, conserving a rare daguerreotype and electrotype pair, and interpreting microfadeometer data.
Having recently started as curatorial fellow in photography at the V&A, supported by The Bern Schwartz Family Foundation, I am keen to further my knowledge of photographic conservation and develop a more holistic approach to my curatorial practice. The round table event provided the perfect opportunity to gain an understanding of the many national and international photography-focused conservation projects that occurred over the last year. In this post I’ll share some personal highlights.
Milene Trindade’s presentation “photographic votive offerings: preservation and exhibition questions of image collections in religious contexts” provided a fascinating account of her original PhD research. Trindade’s PhD focuses on the social significance and conservation issues surrounding photographic votive offerings in religious sites. Votive offerings are objects displayed in sacred places as a mark of devotion or to pay respects to the deceased. Popular offerings include paintings, hair and, in Portugal, wax depictions of limbs. Less common, although prevalent in the Alentejo region of southern Portugal, are votive offerings of photographs. As Trindade explained, there are shrines containing multiple photographs that depict individuals or groups. These date from the nineteenth century onwards and therefore include a range of processes. Owing to their content, the photographs have a strong emotional and sentimental significance, representing ancestors and community. Unfortunately, despite their social and cultural value, they present multiple conservation issues: there are no inventories, no environmental controls in place, no dedicated conservator, and an overall lack of funds to enable conservation work. During her research Trindade identified a range of issues at the shrines including broken glass, image loss and gelatin deterioration, thus demonstrating the need for intervention by a conservator to scope and stabilise the collections. Trindade’s PhD aims to present the cultural and historical significance of these spaces, creating knowledge and encouraging conversations about the future preservation of these sites.
Milene with some votive photographs
Following Trindade, Nicholas Burnett gave a thorough and interesting account of his analysis of the techniques employed by photographers working on “Reports by the Juries”, one of the first publications to have been illustrated with photographs. This incredibly ambitious nineteenth-century project documented the outstanding works of the Great Exhibition of 1851 and resulted in 131 deluxe copies, each containing 154 works, totalling 20,174 salted paper prints. Burnett revealed various techniques, including bleaching and scraping, to produce the clean, blank backgrounds shown in many of the published prints. The presentation had particular personal resonance as I had previously worked on the reports series held in the Royal Collection. The comparison between prints held at various organisations, including the Royal Collection and Rijiksmueum, was notable and provided a unique insight into the early editing processes employed by nineteenth-century photographers.
Sam Brown’s presentation on “developments in mounting techniques for photographs” inspired great interest among many of the attendees. Over a career that has included positions at Tate, the National Portrait Gallery and the Royal Collection Trust, Brown has been developing mounting techniques that eliminate the need for adhesives and fixings. Instead, paper and melinex are carefully constructed, in an almost origami-like fashion, to gently hold the works. The flexible construction also enables the photographs to move and adapt across the period of exhibition and mounting. During the break, Brown showed examples of the mounting techniques and was encouraged to share his findings with attendees and other conservation colleagues.
Two of Sam Brown’s innovative mounts
Overall, the aspect of the conference that I found most notable was the amazing sense of collaboration. This collaborative approach manifested itself most visibly in the question and answer sessions that were filled with valuable discussions. There was a real desire among participants to exchange knowledge and techniques.
I am greatly appreciative to Stephanie Jamieson for inviting me to the round table, and I look forward to attending again in the future.
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