A Short History of Photograph Collecting

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A Short History of Photograph Collecting

This is an excellent article on collecting photography by Penelope Dixon (copyrighted 2001 and used with

permission). She has over 30 years experience in the field and since 1981, has headed her own photography

appraisal firm, Penelope Dixon & Associates. She resides and works from Miami, Martha's Vinyard and NewYork, and her website can be viewed atwww.peneloped.com.

hotographs was practically simultaneous with the invention of photography. P & D Colnaghi, a well-established art gallery in London, solsenting both the work of Roger Fenton and Julia Margaret Cameron. People became obsessed with capturing their own likenesses. A popuwas the exchange of carte-de-visites. People collected cartes of their friends and family and put them into albums, much like children exchur present fascination with Hollywood personalities, they were also avid collectors of celebrity images. A recent exhibition at the Nationaliful and the Damned: The Creation of Identity in Nineteenth Century Photography , [accompanied by a fine catalogue] explores the effects

s were another early collectible. The very wealthy would set off on long excursions, the grand tour, and instead of taking their own phoomplicated equipment precluded this] they would purchase photographs of each place they visited, later putting them into large albums. Am of the 1860s might include photographs by William Notman of Canada, Charles Clifford of Spain, Carlo Ponti and Fratelli Alinari of Itae East.

were published in albums in the 19th Century, presumably to be sold to institutions or wealthy private collectors. Examples include Peter e on the Norfolk Broads or John Thomsons Street Life in London. These early albums were precursors to the photographic portfolios proographers. Other parallels between 19th and 20th Century collecting can be seen in government or corporation sponsored photography. Tht hired Thomas Annan to record the Glasgow slums and this work was published in 1874 as Old Closes and Streets of Glasgow. Edouard Bstoriques in France to document the architecture of the country on his 1851 mission heliographique. Many similar projects have been donewis Hines work for the National Child Labor Committee.

ons also had their beginnings in the mid-19th Century. The first auction of photographs took place in London in 1854. The first auction in Marshall Sale, held by Swann Galleries in 1952. The prices from that sale would make you cry.

raphy as artwas still being debated, by the early 20th Century photographs had become firmly established as a collectible. Alfred Stiegliork from 1905 until his death in 1946. Like many contemporary galleries today, he exhibited photographs alongside the work of modern avys gallery in New York, open between 1931 and 1949, introduced many photographers to the collecting publish, including Weston, Shehe 1950s was Helen GeesLimelightand after a dry period in the 1960s, the early 1970s saw the beginning of the photography markees in New York, London and other major cities, we can now find hundreds worldwide.
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f the Market

the story of the rise and fall and rise again of the Ansel Adams market. In some ways it is a good example of the market as a whole. Photoin 1975 for $400 were selling for between $4,000 and $16,000 by 1979, thanks to the astute marketing of Harry Lunn. By the early 1980s

n about $2,000 and $10,000. Today, they are back up again, but this time coming close to the $100,000 mark for particularly fine vintage prise Over Hernandez. What happened? First, the limitation in 1975 of his prints and subsequent creation of rarity, which coincided with a d investors into the market. Then came a bad economy and supply began to exceed the demand.

n the market happened in the early 1990s. Prior to this time, there had been less interest in vintage prints, that is, those prints which were mmade his/her original negative. Hence, there were extensive reprintings by Ansel Adams, Andre Kertesz, Henri Cartier-Bresson as these ph

he bandwagon.

e market have been certain blockbustermuseum shows which have contributed to a larger public awareness of the medium as well as pan increase in value for a certain photographer or period of photography. Also, blockbuster auctions, such as the multi-media Man Ray sa1990s where only 1% of the items offered failed to sell, contributed an energy and stability to the market.

ve changed the structure of the contemporary art market and will continue to do so. More people attend auctions than ever before, the housn buyers and sellers.

d You Collect Photographs?

al is an obvious answer but aesthetic considerations are far more important to my mind. You might have to live with a particular photograpit, so you had better like it. I used to collect photographs because I loved the images, because of the accessibility of so many pictures on thnable prices. I stopped collecting and have sold most of my collection, not because any of those reasons changed but because I couldnt tin two humid locations], and any works on paper do need a lot of love and attention. Also, going back to the investment potential, many o it was a good time to sell.

What to Look For

f photographs was Edward SteichensFamily of Man exhibition and book. I spent hours as a child pouring over the images. Some 20 yeaht was an image by Bill Brandt of the girl on Lambeth Walk, parading in her mothers high-heeled shoes. I think I paid about $150 for it abad investment, although I certainly didnt buy it with this in mind. So, what should you look for when collecting photographs? There are

e the same ones I use in establishing value in my photographic appraisals.

ular image

g of the print

um

ture or identification

tion

n or known extant prints, i.e. rarity

nance

in the market of the artist andthe particular image

he or she, where do they fit into the history of art, the history of photography, what is their place in the present market and how does their wk exhibited regularly, is it critically acclaimed?

love it? Can you say, as did the well-known collector Arnold Crane in responding to the question,what do you look for in a photographs for me! It hits me first in the gut and then in the eye!How does the subject relate to the particular artists body of workAdams madof important artists and some of these are very goodArnold Newman makes portraits but he has also taken landscape photographs, a fewy opinion. Is the artists identity inherent in the image? How does this particular image relate to the history of art, the history of the mediuce? Can you predict the future masterpieces in contemporary photography? Why do Edward Westons Shells range in value from about $


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me image?

was the print made, is it vintage or contemporary, is it something in-between? Who made the print? Westons photographs come in four valater by himself, in the 1930s from 1920s negatives, in the 1940s from 1930s negatives; project printsmade under his supervision by hd developed Parkinsons disease and posthumous prints by his son Cole. Is a vintage print necessarily better than a contemporary print? B

made beautiful, large contemporary prints from their earlier negatives. Is one better than the other? Is it not a matter of taste, and in some ca

d of print is it, what is the process, is it stable? [Platinum always is, early calotypes can continue to fade]. Is the process what this particulaplatinum prints are probably better than his earlier silver prints, which takes us back to the issue of vintage or contemporary. Printing style

epending on the available papers and the age of the photographer [Bill Brandts prints became darker after the 1970s, due to deterioratingoice?] What does the photographer himself think of a print?a valid, but not necessarily the ultimate opinion and also, occasionally a daknown to have torn up older prints brought to them for authentication.

what is the norm in this particular instance? An unsigned contemporary Adams photograph is a problem, an unsigned Walker Evans is notaid,Buy a photograph for whats on the front, not the backwhich is good advice; however, what is on the back or the mount helps us uarantee because photographers are known to have sometimes used older stamps on later prints].

mportant consideration, but again, only relevant to what is normal for a particular photographers work from a particular period. Most cohe exception perhaps of the Starn Brothers, are expected to be pristine; photographs by Weegee are expecte d to be creased or marred [but

ed off one dealer to a group of fake prints]. 19th Century prints are often faded, as the richest examples are already in private collections oexample of an image which you can find [and afford].

tant when considering what is available, what you like and what you can afford. However, certain smaller editions by photographers, suchprobably never go up in value like her larger, smaller-editoned 20 x 24 prints. Which brings us to the next point

edition or known extant prints, i.e. rarity, is an important factor. For contemporary works this information is often easily available by the most photographers did not limit their prints from a particular negative there was no need. So when artists such as Ansel Adams, Harry to the rapidly evolving market, they produced a lot of images without numbering their prints, as they already made prints of most of their

mbering these new ones. However, by now the market has absorbed most of these images and they are only found on the secondary market

ware of how each image is limited, e.g. prior to her new large-format landscapes, Sally Mann used to print each of her images of children iagain in 8 x 10 inches while reserving the right to produce yet another 25 in 16 x 20 inch format. So you might never know exactly how mithout checking with the artist or her dealers. This is also a good example of the market: Manns 20 x 24 inch prints are the ones which frthe ones to retain their value. Manns prints also give us an example of step-pricing: the first five prints sold started at around $1,500, th

final print was sold at around $7,500.

lways been an important factor in the painting and print markets and is fast becoming the same in photography. Besides the possibility of cecause of the reputation of the previous owner, provenance is also important in determining that a photograph is not a forgery.

in the market of the artist and the particular image has been discussed above, and knowing the sales records for the artist and for the partico consider before buying a particular photograph.

ons: Eventually, you should decide on the kind of collection you want to pursueshould it be aninvestment grade collection, i.e. well-sts, or something more adventurous, such as up and coming artists who can often be found in benefit auctions like those held byCenter fo

ou interested in a particular period, or genre of photography; do you want to collect a particular artist in depth? Are you interested in anonyof is trends what is fashionable today could be in the trash heap tomorrow. Buy what you like, the worst thing that can happen is that yoe.

Where to Buy

w what to look for in a photograph, where do you go to fine it?

new collectors to find one or two dealers or galleries which show the kind of work they like and establish a relationship. Dont be afraid t
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ancisco, New York or Los Angeles they may look forbidding but theyre generally run by nice people who want to sell you something!town dealer. Loyalty to a dealer who has spent time helping you with your collection will pay off with offerings of special prints and good

uctions. There is a plethora of photography auctions today from Sothebys and Christies and Swann in New York City to smaller regionactions in Boston, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Houston, Woodstock, among others, European sales in France, Germany and England. Withew collectors should start with the previews, where you can observe the prints close-up, make notes in your catalog, overhear interesting co

o to the auctions to observe how the bidding works, who the players are, how realistic are the estimates. When you have more of a grip onll, then you can go and bid, with firm top bids so that you wont be swayed by momentary auction fever.

hese rules is benefit auctions. Go to as many as you can, buy for fun, and your support of the not-for-profit organization will usually results at way below their retail values. Almost everything contemporary in my collection is from the annual CPW auction. This years auction

Kenna, Joyce Tennyson, William Wegman, Larry Fink, Keith Carter, James Fee, Kenro Izu, Andrea Modica, Ellen Carey and many, many

alers fairs. AIPAD, the largest, is held annually in New York in February. Fotofest is in Houston every other year. Chicago and Los Angnd other European cities. These are great places to see lots of work, compare prices, meet dealers from other parts of the country, go to symh other collectors.

rmed Collector

w what to look for in a print and where to buy it, what else do you need to prepare yourself to become a collector of fine, or fun, photograpst examples, particularly in 19th Century, of photographic prints. This will give you a point of reference from which to judge. Also, museu

e field who often help us see work in new contexts. There is one caveat here: we should be aware that the label ofmasterpieceaffects oaid to criticize of disagree or find our own masterpieces.

ations such asPhotography in New York, which lists exhibitions around the country andThe Photograph Collectornewsletter, which repot and gives the latest gossip. Subscribe to all the major auction catalogs; even if you dont go to all the sales, you can obtain condition rep

ore. The websitewww.photoeye.comout of Santa Fe is a great source for all the latest, and older, photography books.

tanding value, that it is not solely inherent in the photograph but rather is a result of many market conditions, that the lowest price for a pa that price should reflect quality but does not necessarily do so, that one persons idea of a masterpiece, may not be anothers.

RETURN TO CONTENTS PAGE

Collecting Antique Photographs
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It is often difficult to understand why someone would give away, or sell, their family photographs, and attimes, harder yet to understand why someone else would buy old photos of people they never knew. Thepeople who collect nineteenth century photographs are as diverse as the images themselves. One mansjunk is another mans treasure is an adage that surfaces in all fields ofcollectibles, and antique

photographyis notimmune.

It isimportanttorememberthatoldphot

ographs are sold both as antiques and art. Rare pictures almost always fits into the latter category, and morecommon images into the former. Knowing which is which requires some research.

However, many collectors are simply drawn to the subject matterchildren are especially popular subjects.Others love the connection they experience with people, places and events of the past. Some look atphotographs with the eye of an artist, marveling at the effects and quality of the images given the bulky,rudimentary equipment and darkrooms of the past.

As in all fields of collecting, some individuals buy with an eye to investing, hoping to cash in on a field thathas been gaining in popularity over the last thirty years. In this instance, it is extremely important that thecollector understands all they can with regards to technique, equipment, subject matter, and famous

photographers. The field is so broad that many serious collectors specialize in one type of photograph. Thefollowing is a brief introduction to some of the types of images you can expect to come across:

Daguerreotypes: An image named after Louis Daguerre (1789-1851) of France who perfected the techniqueof producing an image on a silver coated copper plate. You can tell you are seeing a daguerreotype if yourown reflection is seen in the mirror like background. Introduced in 1839, these are the earliest photographicimages. By 1860, other new photographic techniques had taken its place. These photographs are usuallyencased in a book -style case made of molded materials or carved wood which protect the image fromexposure to air and to tarnishing of the silver surface.

Ambrotype: this was a negative image produced on a glass plate, viewed as positive by the addition ofblack paint that was applied to the back. This type was invented by Frederick Archer of England, and was

introduced in 1854. By 1865, it was passe.

Tin Types: (also called ferrotype, from theFrench word for iron: fer). A thin sheet ofiron was given an undercoat of blackJapan varnish. This allowed the image tobe viewed as positive. Tintypes wereintroduced in 1856, and waned inpopularity by 1867. This period identifiesthe era that tintypes were popular in casedimages. In reality, tintypes were seen inmany different forms as late as 1930! The


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subject matter will often give the viewer a good indication of actual age.

The three types above were often displayed in small hinged book- style cases thus are known as casedimages. The style, material, and the cut of the mat surrounding the subject all give clues to their age. Somecollectors specialize in these types of photographs only.

A person may choose to collect only early paper photographs.Cartes de visite translated as visiting cards in French were verypopular in their time. Due to the increasing popularity and lowercost of the technology of creating photographs, many people couldnow afford them. Cartes de visites were the poor mans portraitand they were exchanged freely with friends and relatives . Theyalso account for much of the antique photos available today, andthey are extremely affordable. However this is not expected tocontinue as more and more collectors learn about this fascinatingarea of collecting.

Antique photographs may be collected by photographer.Knowledge of early photographers in general, and in your locality

is necessary, and research is in order. Collectors also collectphotographic equipment or photo related advertising. Others maycollect all accessory forms of photographs such as photos on metalbuttons, photo albums and frames.

As you can see, the collecting of photographs is anything butlimited. A good bookfor the novice collector is The CollectorsGuide to Early Photographs by O. Henry Mace. Thus armed, itis now time for you to seek out photographic treasures of yourown.

Written by:Johanne Yakula

From Times Past12403 Stony Plain RoadEdmonton, AB T5N 3N3

From Ambrotypes to Stereoviews, 150 Years of Photographs

By Maribeth KeaneDecember 12th, 2008

Jack and Beverly Wilgus discussphotographandcameracollecting, from daguerrotypes to contemporary

photographs to their very own camera obscura. Based in Baltimore, Maryland, they can be reached

through their website,Collection of Collections, which is a member of ourHall of Fame.
http://www.collectorsweekly.com/articles/an-interview-with-antique-photograph-and-camera-collectors-jack-and-beverly-wilgus/http://www.collectorsweekly.com/articles/an-interview-with-antique-photograph-and-camera-collectors-jack-and-beverly-wilgus/http://www.collectorsweekly.com/photographs/overviewhttp://www.collectorsweekly.com/photographs/overviewhttp://www.collectorsweekly.com/photographs/overviewhttp://www.collectorsweekly.com/cameras/overviewhttp://www.collectorsweekly.com/cameras/overviewhttp://www.collectorsweekly.com/cameras/overviewhttp://brightbytes.com/collection/collect.htmlhttp://brightbytes.com/collection/collect.htmlhttp://brightbytes.com/collection/collect.htmlhttp://www.collectorsweekly.com/hall-of-fame/view/collection-of-collectionshttp://www.collectorsweekly.com/hall-of-fame/view/collection-of-collectionshttp://www.collectorsweekly.com/hall-of-fame/view/collection-of-collectionshttp://www.collectorsweekly.com/hall-of-fame/view/collection-of-collectionshttp://brightbytes.com/collection/collect.htmlhttp://www.collectorsweekly.com/cameras/overviewhttp://www.collectorsweekly.com/photographs/overviewhttp://www.collectorsweekly.com/articles/an-interview-with-antique-photograph-and-camera-collectors-jack-and-beverly-wilgus/


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1/2 plate Ambrotype

We both come from families that had collections and we both had collections as children. Jack lost hiswhen his grandmother threw them out at one point. His grandmother collectedchinaandglass. My parentshad collections. When we married, we had both studied photography. In Chicago, we hardly ever saw anyphotographs. We went to antique shops and we prowled around in flea markets and the malls, but wemostly boughtVictorian furnitureand decorative thingsstained glasswindows and craftwork and thatsort of thing.

It wasnt until we came to the East Coast and went to Pennsylvania that we began to see things likedaguerreotypesandstereo cards, and we got real interested in them. That was in 68, which was right at thebeginning of the surge inphotographcollecting. There were some big auctions that year and severalcatalogs started. We werent pioneers, we didnt get in before the beginning of the modern photographycollecting, but we were early in the process. First thing we bought was a daguerreotype in Pennsylvania.We still have it.
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Jack: Our collection spans anything dealing with photography, but its primarily from pre-photographythrough contemporary. Our collection is generalist. We have prints by fine arts photographers today as wellas from the past.

Collectors Weekly: Why didnt you find anything until you went to the East Coast?

Jack: We did a lot of looking in Chicago at that time. It just wasnt something that most people werecollecting. It just wasnt there. When we came here, because it was a hotbed of activity historically as far asthe development of photographyBaltimore and Philadelphia and Washington, D.C. and New York, alongthat corridorthere was a ton of stuff. When we started going to antique shops and flea markets here,especially in Pennsylvania, wed find incredible things. Of course, things have changed. Now you can findit in Chicago all you want, Im sure.

Collectors Weekly: When did people really start collecting photographs?

Beverly: 1967, 68, in that era. We later met and madefriends with people whod been collecting since the30sand40s. Somebody would get an interest in it and would just collect a lot of things likedaguerreotypesorstereo cards, but there wasnt a community. It wasnt something that a lot of people did.Somephotographshave historical value and some people collected for that reasonCivil War orpresidential things, for examplebut not just general photographic collecting. You dont find muchmention of it before the late60s.

Daguerreotype from Perkins Artist Galleries in Baltimore, MD

Neither one of us really studied the history of photography formally before we got here, not as far as takingcourses, so we began to look for examples. We would go to the outdoor markets and find things likephotographer samplers, rolls of photographs on canvas, carbon photographs on glass and china, that sort ofthing. Theyre just really interesting objects that used photography, so we began to collect stereo cards, andnow we have something like 10,000 stereo cards of different subjects. We bought them a few at a time overthe last 30-something years.
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There were some organizations about that same time. There was the New York group, and theres one inRochester thats still going. There was one formed in Baltimore in the70s. Some of them are still active.There were mail orders. There were several journals put out by the societies. Its not as active anymorebecause a lot of our contemporaries and people that we knew who were older arent as active now.

Theres an organization of people who collect daguerreotypes The Daguerreian Society. Theres one of

stereo collectors. There are a couple of people who do sales shows every year. Theres still somecommunity, but not as active as it was in the 70s maybe and 80s.

Collectors Weekly: Why did people start becoming interested in collecting photography all of a

sudden?

Beverly: There was a fairly important auction. One of the really early collectors sold these things inauctions, and a daguerreotype camera sold for a several thousand dollars, and that got everybody allexcited. In fact, someone at the time said, Thats ridiculous. Nocamerais worth that much money, and ofcourse now some cameras sell for hundreds of thousands of dollars if theyre really rare or unique. It justwas the right time for it. Some people were writing books about itBeaumont Newhall and HelmutGernsheim. They started quite a bit earlier, writing books about the history of photography, so theycertainly had some influence.

Wed go to the outdoor markets and find photographer samplers, rolls of photographs on canvas, carbonphotographs on glass and china.

Jack: I think people got involved for different reasons. A lot of them were photographers involved withphotography either professionally or as amateurs, and some people are more into the equipment. Collectingis like being a detective. When you deal with original material, whether it be images or objects, yourperspective on it really changes. You see things and you understand things very subtly that most peoplenever do because they only read about it or looked at pictures. We primarily collect images, although we dohave some equipment. We have things that are related, like stereo and detective cameras. TheKodakwasone of the first really major detective cameras in 1888.

Beverly: They just called it that because it didnt look like an ordinary camera on a tripod would look. Inother words, you could sneak around with one and it wouldnt be so obvious that you were taking pictures.Theres a whole thing about the cultural aspects of photography, how photography changed and howpeople related to it, thats another interest of ours.

Jack: Ive been teaching the history of photography for a longtime and I use our collection. Ive been usingit for years, so when we talk about various areas, people can actually see what things look like and howthey were.

Beverly: Its hard to describe adaguerreotype. If youve seen pictures, you really dont know what its like.You need to see one; turn it in your hand and see the mirror surface to see how it changes when thingsreflect in it. Its really a wonderful, intimate kind of thing to hold one.

Collectors Weekly: The different categories on your site, like costume and point of view didyou come up with those?

Beverly: Yes. We just started collectingphotographsthat interested us and you begin to see relationships.In a few cases, we collected an area, but it didnt start out to be that. For example, two years ago we boughtthe spirit photographs by Mumler, who is one of the most important spirit photographers, but then webegan to find more and eventually we ended up with a collection. So some of our photos were collected tobe part of a subcategory and some of them we just found that we had enough to be a subcategory.
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Jack: We have images of photographers. We have a large collection of pictures that deal with people takingpictures.

Beverly: And some things we said we werent going to collect, like Civil War. There were a lot of CivilWar collectors even back when we started. Photographs of men in uniforms were already pretty priceywhen we began to collect. We said, Well, were not going to collect those, but then we did find a few and

we looked into some fairly good-sized collections of images and we ended up with more Civil War imagesthan we expected to have. Sometimes it just happens.

Jack: Thats what I meant about learning things. The Civil War pictures really gave me a feeling for whatthe Civil War was like in a way that I never had before. You study it at school, but seeing those images andlooking at things more intensely, its made it more real.

Beverly: Now with the Internet, the way you can research things is even better. You can find a photographand say, Thats interesting. I wonder what thats about. You look for the clues and you research it andyou find out who the person was and what they were doing, and it really is interesting to trace downrelationships and historical information. Thats one of my favorite things to do now, not so much to acquiremorephotographsbut to learn more about them once we have them. We have a very large collection, and itcould keep you really busy for a long time.

Collectors Weekly: How many photographs do you have in your collection?

Beverly: Many thousands. We have about 200daguerreotypes, and I think probably not quite that manyambrotypes, and about 10,000stereo cards. With the prints, definitely thousands because we havecartes-de-visites, photographic postcards, etc.

We have a large collection ofpostcardsof photographers. Some are photographs and some are drawings,prints, comic animals withcameras, children with cameras. Then we also have a collection ofreal photopostcards, which are photographs made on postcard stock, and theyre not al l necessarily of photographers.Some of them are just nice photographs, exaggerations like photomontages of people with large animalsand large fruits and vegetables. There are photographic printscutout photographs that are collaged andthen re-photographed. Theyre real photographs, but theyre not real. Theyre very much like this thing youdo with Photoshop now where you can put things together, cut them together and retouch them so they looklike theyre something theyre not.

Some people collect by subject. Some people collect by process. Some people collect everything. Forexample, we have a friend who has a large collection oftintypes, which are generally considered prettyordinary, inexpensive photographs, but he has some absolutely extraordinary images. We have someextraordinary images with tintypes toophotographers and wonderful painted backgrounds. We havesalted paper prints, daguerreotypes, ambrotypes, tintypes, hand-colored photographs.
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Cabinet card by Lies of Pittsburgh, PA

Jack: Collotype negatives, paper negatives, platinum prints, carbro prints, stuff like that.. Because Iteach, I have collected things that illustrate the different areas. Also, Ive done many lectures on the historyof color photography, which is an area that I specialize in, and we also collect things like autochromes.

Beverly: There are all kinds of collectors. There are people who are very specific and there are people whoare very general. There are people who just have an accumulation rather than a collection. We know peoplewho only collectcamerasand they arent interested inphotographsat all. They come into our house andsay, Show me your cameras, and they wont even look at photographs. Then there are people who are theopposite.

Weve been very lucky that we have studied with and known some of the great photographers. Forexample, Aaron Siskind, who both of us studied with. We have seven of his prints, and Im sure we neverwould have bought seven of his prints or have been given seven of his prints if we hadnt actually studiedwith him. I thinkwe were lucky we started early, too, because we would never have afforded todays pricesback when we started collecting.

Jack: Theres been a tremendous change in the value. Some things have not gone up cameras have stayedpretty much the samebut the images themselves have escalated.
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Beverly: Well, the high-end stuff has. I would say that the more ordinary photographs have not gone upvery much.

Jack: No, not the ordinary ones. But snapshots and vernacular photography at one point werent valuedvery much. I think its the quality of the image and whats going on in the photograph that establishes thevalue there, and I think being able to recognize that is an important part of collecting. Know what youre

looking at. Understand the history. Understand the process.

Collectors Weekly: What is the value based on?

Beverly: Definitely the first thing is who made it.

Jack: If you can find it, but thats not always important either. There was a big show for the anniversary ofphotography and they purposely included a lot of pictures that were anonymous. That was a good thing in away. Its nice to know who made aphotographand when it was made and all those kinds of things, but youshould be able to recognize a really exciting image and something thats really important withoutnecessarily knowing.

Beverly: I agree, but I would say that you wont pay a hundred thousand dollars for an anonymousphotograph, but you would for something by one of the major photographers. There are different tiers ofvalue.
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Collectors Weekly: Are there some photographers in particular who are really sought after?

Hand tinted real photo postcard

Beverly: People come in and out of fashion and get discovered and rediscovered, and then someone willhave a big show for someone. Almost anything by Edward Weston, for example, is going to have somevalue, but the vintage prints and condition will determine it. There are always young photographers comingup, and I think the thing thats the most different today is the way a young photographer who gets pickedby the galleries can suddenly be worth an awful lot of money with very little time.

That didnt happen to people like Weston and Wynn Bullock. They didnt make a lot of money when theywere young photographers working. You could buy their prints for $25 or $50 or $100. Now theressomething more corporate about some of the contemporary photographic selling that doesnt appeal to meas much, maybe because we dont have that much money to spend. Id rather go out and find the things oreven have a gallery owner bring them to me.

Jack: In the fine art world, a lot of the major artists working today are working with the medium ofphotography so you see some wonderful contemporary work being done, and its very expensive. Its a lotdifferent than it used to be.
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Beverly: There are also people who buy art andphotographsfor investment. They buy them and they nevereven take possession of them. They stay in the gallery safe until theyre ready to sell them. Thats the kindof thing that doesnt appeal to me at all, thinking about photographs and seeing stocks and bonds andinvestment.

Jack: If we buy something, we really care about it. If we do purchase a print, we cant do that casually. We

have to love it and want to live with it. Its nice to know if it would go up in value thats great but mostof the images we have, we live with and we enjoy it and its something thats part of everyday experience.Actually we put a room in our house just for photographs because we didnt have enough wall space andproper lighting and everything. We put up a lot of things so we can see them every day. Not that we donthave things in boxes, too, but I think its nice to be able to enjoy what you collect. Thats the best reason tobuy.

Beverly: They can be just like little sculptures. You can have a nice display ofcameras, and I think thatthats a really good way to start. Just buy things you like and put them together. Some of my favorite thingsarent the most expensive or the most valuable things we have. Theyre just things I like to enjoy.

The Collectors Weekly: When you get a photograph, how do you go about researching it?

Beverly: I put things on the Internet. I enjoy that. I put a lot of stuff up on Flickr. If theres a photographersname on it, I Google him. I just follow clues. In fact, I have a couple of things on the Internet where Idescribe how I went about identifying them. Theres a certain amount of our collection on our cameraobscura site, and I have one page on astereoviewof a camera obscura in a park that was unidentified; noname on it, no identification. It took me years to run down where it was and I finally discovered it.

Stereo card self portrait by G.S. Irish photographer, in Glens Falls, N.Y.

I looked at all kinds of park architecture and I found one that was very similar. I began to look for maps ofthat park and finally was able to buy a sketch that had an aerial drawing of this park, and I was able toexactly pinpoint where the camera obscura was in relation to the other building. So it took me, what, 10 or15 years to run that out. Once you make the discovery, its like Eureka! Its really a great feeling.
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I used to go to the library and spend hours looking through books. I still occasionally go to the librarybecause everything isnt on the internet, but its just so wonderful to have all the resources. And GoogleBooks now, its just wonderful the old 19th-century books are on Google Booksand Google has a sitewith all the patents now, which is great. If youve got a camera that has a patent number on it, you can plugthat in and get drawings and descriptions and information. It has scans of the old drawings and the patents.Its fantastic.

Collectors Weekly: Do you collect Kodak items?

Beverly: Just those that appeal to us. We have everything from theKodak#1 all the way up to somecontemporary metal signs. On our site, theres a life-size Kodak racecar driver standup cardboard, a Kodakflag and all kinds of Kodak banners. When we started with Kodak film, Kodak was just synonymous withphotography. The yellow and red color combination, which is striking, just became something connectedwith photography. Again, were small-time Kodak collectors. We know someone who has a house full ofKodak things. He has pretty close to every Kodak camera available and incredibleadvertisingandmemorabilia, all kinds of stuff. Theres always somebody with more than you have, which is fine.

Collectors Weekly: Do you collect other types of photographica?

Beverly: Yes. We have a section on optical toys on our site. We have zoetropes, praxinoscopes,thaumatropes and zograscopes. The zoetrope and praxinoscope will either use mirrors or slits and youllhave a little set of drawings. Its like strip animation. Its the same the way cartoons are made today. Itsjust pre-movie movies.

We dont have a big collection ofmagic lanterns. Again we know people who have hundreds of them, butwe have I guess five or six. The magic lanterns have been around since the Renaissance, really, but ours aremostly early 20th century.

Collectors Weekly: Do you use any the things that you collect?

Beverly: We have used some of thecameras. We did an exhibition where we madestereo cardswith one of

the old view cameras. Weve used the toys for demonstrations because weve done lectures on optical toys,and Jack takes one of them when he talks about the origins of motion picture, about Muybridge andmovements. A lot of our cameras use an obsolete film size, although you probably could make most ofthem work. There are people who actually spool odd sizes of old film, and then you can do things like cutpaper or sheet film. One of our projects has always been to use some of the cameras, and maybe well do itafter my husband retires.
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Collectors Weekly: Since photography is such a broad area, are there a lot of different age

groups that collect it?

Trick Photography booklet by Walter F. Eagleson, 1902

Jack: I have students who became collectors after they studied the history of photography, and theyvefound some pretty good things.

Beverly: In all of the groups we belong to, theyre always bemoaning the fact that there arent more young

collectors, and were hoping that some of them will start. Young people are getting interested in maybe notthe top end of the line, but I know on Flickr, I correspond with some people who seem fairly young. Theydo interesting images, not necessarily the really expensive stuff. eBay has done a lot to change the face ofall kinds of collecting, including photography. The high-end stuff still goes really high on eBay, but youcan gather an awful lot of interesting things that are not necessarily really expensive.

One young woman that I correspond with buys lots ofphotographs, and shes very thorough going throughand picking out photos that are going to have some interesting things in them. Shes gotten someremarkable photographs just by buying a lot of 15, 20, 30 photographs for not a lot of money and thenfinding in it some real gems. Thats one way to get started flea markets or antique shops or retail shops.
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The hunt becomes almost more important than finding things sometimes. It gets you out and around andits entertaining. We go to a lot of antique shows now and buy nothing. Every so often we find a real gem,but usually we look at a lot of stuff and get some exercise.

Collectors Weekly: Where do you collect from?

Beverly: Initially it was photographic shows. Theres one in New York and theres still one in Washington,D.C. There were quite a few mail-order catalogs at one time. Then, of course, with the Internet and eBay,we began to find things there, and we bought an awful lot of things on eBay over the years, more in the olddays than we do now. Its getting to be less.

All of the clubs used to have shows. There arent so many photo collecting clubs anymore, as I said. Weused to have a show here in Baltimore. We actually sold in them for a while. Its more the Internet now andthere are still a few shows, but were not buyingas much because weve got so much. What we like to donow is get our collection in order and do the research. Were working on a book on the camera obscura,researching that.

Collectors Weekly: What is the Magic Mirror of Life?

Eugen Sandow, 19th Century prototype strongman, real photo postcard
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Beverly: The term itself is from a sign. If you look at the site, youll see a picture of a camera obscura at theFairmount Park in Philadelphia and the sign on the side said The Magic Mirror of Life. It was just the idea;youre seeing real life on the table inside the camera obscura, and its magic, so thats what we call our tentthat we built.

Jack: It took me a couple of years to do it, but its on the website. Its a portable tent camera obscura which

you can set up on location. You can have about 10 people inside of it. The first time we showed it, it was atthe George Eastman House for our photo history conference. We were doing the main speech lecture on thehistory of the camera obscura, so it seemed appropriate. So thats where it debuted. It was interesting.Visiting them over the years and collecting them, and I made smaller ones, but actually taking on building aroom-size one, Ive learned a lot, a lot of engineering. I got more than I expected. It was challenging, it wasfun, and it was two years of my life.

Beverly: If you look at the first page on theMagic Mirror of Lifesite, youll see a section that has picturesof it where weve set it up at conferences. We just did it at the Magic Lantern Society in Washington, D.C.during the summer. There are some pictures showing it being put up. In the middle of that page, it showsthe sign from the Philadelphia Park from the Fairmount Park camera obscura and then there was one wemade to go with it. Youll see several pages that show it, even a little animation on the one at the MerrillInstitute that shows it being put up.

Collectors Weekly: Do people ever try to sell fake photographs?

Beverly: Yes. Its really hard to fake some things, and easy to fake others. There are a lot of people doingcollodion now, which is what you use forambrotypesandtintypesand moderndaguerreotypes. Some ofthem use modern subjects. Some mark their work; some dont. Every so often, I see something and Im alittle suspicious, just because you have a feeling for it. You can dress people in old costumes, but they justdont look the same. This is not to say that we couldnt be fooled, but you develop a feeling for it. You picksomething up and it just doesnt feel right. There have definitely been some fairly major scandals. Peoplereprinted famous negatives and sold them to friends.

Jack: Photos do age. There are different kinds of materials. When I was a graduate student in the mid60s,the photographic printing papers that were available were quite different than what people use today for

black and white printing. The older prints have a lot more silver in them. Its just a totally different quality,so a vintage print will easily stand out if you compare it to something that was done more recently. Even ifthey were using the original negative, you could tell the difference.

Collectors Weekly: What are some good resources for people to look at?

Beverly: Forcameras, theres a sort of a bible.

Jack: Its by McKeown. Weve got every edition of it so far. Its a big, fatbook, and they keep changing allthe time. A camera collector would enjoy looking at that because you can actually look up all the camerasthat youre collecting. Theyll give you all kinds of information about the designer, and not just prices.Theres also a little history. Its fun.

Collectors Weekly: What kind of advice would you have for someone who is new to

photography collecting?

Beverly: I would say look at a lot of things. Find out what appeals to you.

Jack: And learn something about the history ofphotography.
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Beverly: If you can specialize, youre probably better off, but if you love everything, then just start buyingwhat you like and maybe you can narrow it down or specialize. As Jack said, read about the history ofphotography. Look at what you can.

Jack: A lot of it is knowing what youre looking at. It also makes it more interesting, and you do learn newthings from collecting. Its like being in touch with the past.

(All images in this article courtesy Jack and Beverly Wilgus ofCollection of Collections)

19th-Century Photographs, from Daguerreotypes to Cartes

de Visites

By Dave MarguliusNovember 26th, 2008

Wes Cowan talks about collecting 19th Century photographs, including daguerreotypes, CDVs and

stereoviews. Cowan, who appears as an appraiser onAntiques Roadshowand is a regular cast member on

the PBS showHistory Detectives, is founder and owner ofCowans Auctions, Inc.

in Cincinnati.

Ive always been interested in antiques. As a kid, I collected a variety of stufffossils, rocks, minerals,natural history stuff, Indian artifacts and antiques. I grew up in Louisville, Kentucky, and my mother had alot ofVictorian antiques. We lived in an old Victorian neighborhood, one of Louisvilles old traditionalneighborhoods. In the1910sand20sit had been very vibrant, but started to go downhill after World WarII when people moved to the suburbs. It was a natural place for antique dealers because the rent was cheap,so there was a high concentration of them.

Half-Plate Daguerreotype of 49ers Mining Scene
http://brightbytes.com/collection/collect.htmlhttp://brightbytes.com/collection/collect.htmlhttp://brightbytes.com/collection/collect.htmlhttp://www.collectorsweekly.com/articles/an-interview-with-19th-century-photograph-and-americana-collector-wes-cowan/http://www.collectorsweekly.com/articles/an-interview-with-19th-century-photograph-and-americana-collector-wes-cowan/http://www.collectorsweekly.com/articles/an-interview-with-19th-century-photograph-and-americana-collector-wes-cowan/http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/roadshow/appraisers/cowan_cwesley.htmlhttp://www.pbs.org/wgbh/roadshow/appraisers/cowan_cwesley.htmlhttp://www.pbs.org/wgbh/roadshow/appraisers/cowan_cwesley.htmlhttp://www.pbs.org/opb/historydetectives/about/wes.htmlhttp://www.pbs.org/opb/historydetectives/about/wes.htmlhttp://www.pbs.org/opb/historydetectives/about/wes.htmlhttp://www.cowanauctions.com/http://www.cowanauctions.com/http://www.cowanauctions.com/http://www.collectorsweekly.com/victorian-era/overviewhttp://www.collectorsweekly.com/victorian-era/overviewhttp://www.collectorsweekly.com/victorian-era/overviewhttp://www.collectorsweekly.com/1910shttp://www.collectorsweekly.com/1910shttp://www.collectorsweekly.com/1910shttp://www.collectorsweekly.com/1920shttp://www.collectorsweekly.com/1920shttp://www.collectorsweekly.com/1920shttp://www.collectorsweekly.com/photographs/daguerreotypeshttp://www.collectorsweekly.com/1920shttp://www.collectorsweekly.com/1910shttp://www.collectorsweekly.com/victorian-era/overviewhttp://www.cowanauctions.com/http://www.pbs.org/opb/historydetectives/about/wes.htmlhttp://www.pbs.org/wgbh/roadshow/appraisers/cowan_cwesley.htmlhttp://www.collectorsweekly.com/articles/an-interview-with-19th-century-photograph-and-americana-collector-wes-cowan/http://www.collectorsweekly.com/articles/an-interview-with-19th-century-photograph-and-americana-collector-wes-cowan/http://brightbytes.com/collection/collect.html


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By the time I got into high school, my interest in antiques was waning. I became interested in archaeology.When I was in graduate school at the University of Michigan writing my doctoral dissertation, I startedgoing back to antique shops, probably as an excuse not to write my dissertation. I didnt really have anymoney, but I became fascinated with earlyphotographyand I could buy photographs reasonably becausethe antique dealers in the early1970sdidnt really know what the stuff was.

I could always walk into an antique shop, spend literally a few dollars, and buy 19th- and early 20th-century photographs. I was drawn to them because of the visual impact, but also because they told a storyabout a person or some historical event that might not have been a big historical event but was certainlyperipheral to some event in American history.

It wasnt long before I met other people in the southeast who were photograph collectors and found thatthese people would actually pay me for the photographs I was buying from antique dealers, or trade. By thetime my dissertation was completed, I was well on my way to being a collector and part-time dealer of19th-century photography.

My collecting interest gradually evolved intostereoviews(also known as stereographs). I was veryinterested in 3D card photographs and collected those very heavily for a number of years, but I dont reallycollect them anymore. I still have a pretty fine collection of them, small but very nice.

I became disillusioned with collectingphotography, because, as most collecting categories do, it wentthrough a cycle. First is the rediscovery by some group of people. Then theres a run-up in prices, a GoldRush mentality, and then the market matures. I became very disenchanted with the idea that what startedoff for me as a pleasing hobby evolved into money, money, money. There was too much competition, and Ijust felt like I didnt want to participate in it.

But also, as I became exposed to different kinds of antiques, I found lots of other kinds of things that Ireally liked. When you collect stereoview cards, they sit in a drawer and you can take them out and look atthem, but its not like having a nice piece offurnitureor a painting or a piece of folk art that you can walkby and touch and have it be a part of your life. So thats what Im collecting now. Im very interested inMidwestern decorative arts and folk art and paintings, things that were done primarily before 1840.

Collectors Weekly: How did you know which photographs to buy, when you first started

collecting?

Cowan: I didnt. It was whatever I thought was interesting and appealing. Like all collectors, I wentthrough a period of just buying all kinds of stuff. Then as your interest and knowledge matures, you lookback at your early purchases and say, what was I thinking? My interest in what I was buying evolved as Ibecame better educated.

Theres a huge world of 19th century photographs, and Id never presume to dictate to a collector whattheir individual taxonomy should be. Ive always taken a historical taxonomy to what photographs wereavailable during what particular period of time. Then the social context and historical context of thatparticular process, and then what the photographs represent within those particular periods.

If youre interested in the earliest history of American photography, for example, then youre going tocollectdaguerreotypes[see image at top], because thats the first commercially viable photograph that wasproduced in the United States. The daguerreotype is a copper plate that is covered with a thin layer ofpolished silver. The image, which generally comes in a little leather case, looks like a mirror when you holdit one way, and if you tilt it another way, you can see the image itself. A lot of people at the time called thedaguerreotype the mirror with a memory.
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Wild Bill Hickok CDV, by Gurney & Son

Daguerreotypes were introduced in the United States in 1839 and were the dominant form of photographtaken until the mid-1850s. Their success exploded in the early 1840s. People tend to think that thedaguerreotype is a fairly rare type of photograph, but its not. The initial daguerreotypes were veryexpensive and not very many were taken because not many people knew how to do it. But by the mid1840s prices had been dropped to the point where the average person could have their picture taken, andthere were literally hundreds of thousands of daguerreotypes, if not millions, taken in America. And theyrestill around.

The most common daguerreotype is a studio portraitsomebody went to a photographers studio and hadtheir picture taken. So if you collect daguerreotype portraits, you have a lot of options. Do you want tocollect daguerreotypes of children with their toys or pets? Daguerreotypes of whole families?Daguerreotypes of female sitters, male sitters, men wearing hats, men smoking cigars? Theres a hugerange of avenues to pursue. But if you want to collect daguerreotypes that were taken outdoors and showscenes of buildings or streets, theyre far fewer by a factor of probably a hundred or more.

In the mid-1850s, thedaguerreotypewas replaced by another photographic process called theambrotypeprocess. The ambrotype process is basically a photograph on glass to negative made positive by putting a
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black backing on it. Then thetintypestarted to become popular in the late 1850s. The Civil War gave akick in the pants to American photography in a huge way, because every Civil War soldier wanted to havehis picture taken. I would guess the average Civil War soldier had his picture taken three or four timesduring the course of his service.

Many Civil War photographs credited to Mathew Brady were taken by people who worked for him.

Paper photography was being experimented with on both sides of the Atlantic, but the French were initiallymore successful than American photographers were with it. By 1859, a new style of photograph had beendeveloped in France was introduced in the United States. That was thecarte de visite, or the CDV as youdsay. It was based upon a calling card that had been in common usage in the mid-19th centurysomethingyoud drop in somebodys bowl when you came to visit them that had your name and how to contact you.The photographic carte de visite has its roots in that calling card.

Paper photography was introduced to the United States in a big way in the late 1850s, just in time for theCivil War. Photographers were very clever in that they found a way to develop acamerathat would takemultiple exposures at one time. A Civil War soldier might go into a photographic studio in 1860 and have adozen photographs made for a couple dollars. These dozen photographs might be taken with a camera thathad six or eight lenses, so theyre taking an identical six or eight photographs at the same time. There were

literally millions of carte de visite photographs taken between 1860 and probably 1875, including hundredsof thousands taken of Civil War soldiers.

Collectors Weekly: Is the survival rate of paper photographs better than the other types?

Cowan: I dont know, but there were more paperphotographstaken because it was a cheap way to make apicture. Condition can be a big issue if the photographer was sloppy. Many photographs that were taken inthe1860sare still around and look just like they looked in the 1860s. But if the photographer didnt takecare to wash or to fix his prints, then they deteriorate. In general, its not the process, how they were takencare of by the photographer. People think a sepia toned photograph is an old photograph, but sepia toning isa product of a photographer not using good chemicals and not fixing the prints to keep them from fading.

New troves of 19th Century photographs are being discovered every day; important discoveries. There areplenty of photographs still out there. Im not sure that the supply will ever be depleted. There are importantthings still to be found.
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Collectors Weekly: How significant are big-name photographers to 19th-century photograph

collectors?

Fine Cabinet Photograph of Calamity Jane

Cowan: Big names are often associated with some of the most iconic images of the 19th century. Therewere many great 19th-century photographers. Mathew Brady was the entrepreneur in the Civil War, butmany photographs that are credited to him were taken by people that worked for him. A lot of those guyswent on to very important careers. Alexander Gardner and Timothy OSullivan, for example, worked forBrady. They didnt like working for him because he took all the credit and didnt give them any.

George Barnard was another great Civil War photographer who began his career in western New York andwent on to make a name for himself. He was a photographer for the Army, and then after the war publisheda monumental book about the Civil War, an iconic photographic book. A.J. Russell was another great CivilWar-era photographer who was actually employed by the U.S. militaryrailroadto take photographs. Hes aguy people dont know very much about, but he made unbelievably greatphotographs.

After the war, lots of these guys went on to have careers in the American West. OSullivan moved west andaccompanied several government expeditions. Gardner was hired to work for some of the railroadcompanies that were building the Transcontinental Railroad. They were looking for routes, so they hired
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Gardner to go out and takepicturesof the scenes along the way. Russell went along the northern route ofthe Transcontinental Railroad and took photographs, primarilystereoviews. He marketed those stereoviewsto make a living, but he also took larger format pictures and some important early photographs.

Collectors Weekly: Why were stereoviews so popular?

Cowan: They were a great form of parlor entertainment. There was notelevision, noradio, and newspapersdidnt have any photographs, so this was a way for people to look at the world. Youd pass a stereoviewaround, and you were immediately thrust into the scene.

Stereoviews started being made in the late 1850s, but their heyday was in the1870s, when any medium sizetown had a photographer taking them. They were sold locally; if there was a stationery store in the town,you could go down there and buy stereoviews that were being marketed by other photographers from otherparts of the country.

Starting in the late 1880s, a number of companies decided that they were going to mass market stereoviewsand opened offices regionally in various parts of the United States. They had salesmen going out and tryingto sell them to homes and schools. They would basically put together a set of stereoviews of China orGreece or Germany or some foreign country and put them in a box.

There were half a dozen companies by the mid-1890s doing this. The Keystone View Company ofMeadville, Pennsylvania ultimately bought out all their competitors. Keystones motto was a stereoscopein every home, and they had regional offices all over the United States that marketed very aggressively toschools and libraries. The sets they sold often came in a box that looked like a book, so youd open the boxand thered be 50 or 100stereoviewsinside you could look at.

Keystone sold stereoscopic libraries to schools which would have a tour of the world, for example. Theycame in 100-card, 200-card, 300-card, 600-card and 1,200-card sets that would take you literally on a tourof the world through the stereoscope. By the1920s, that market started to fade. Newspapers started to havemorephotographs. There was radio. People were getting news in different ways. The Keystone ViewCompany finally closed its doors in the mid-1960s, and all their negatives now are at the CaliforniaMuseum of Photography in Riverside.
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Collectors Weekly: Have you noticed any recent trends in collecting 19th-century photographs?

Important Long-Lost Quarter Plate Daguerreotype of John Brown, the Abolitionist, by the AfricanAmerican Daguerreotype Artist, August Washington

Cowan: eBay has been a great leveler of the marketplace for 19th-century photography as well as Americanantiques in general. Thats not true at the top of the market, but certainly for the vast majority of collectible19th-century and early 20th-century photography, eBay has depressed the market, just like its depressedthe market for R. S. Prussia andFiesta wareandcarnival glass. You name it, if it was produced in a factory,

the value of this stuff has gone down.

Some images that are incredibly rare and important have still held value, but if you were a person who wascollecting Keystone View Company stereographs in the1970sand paying $10 or $15 for a SpanishAmerican war stereoview, today that stereoview is worth $3 or $4 because there were so many produced.So its been great for collectors.

If youre adaguerreotypecollector, you want to collect large daguerreotypes of unusual subject matter. Wesold a daguerreotype of John Brown last year, one of six known to exist, for $96,000. A few years ago, wesold a daguerreotype taken during the vigilance period in San Francisco in 1852 that sold for $129,000. Ifyoure a daguerreotype collector, those are the ones youre looking for, not a mundane portrait thats asnapshot of somebody in the 1850s. Scarcity and condition are the driving factors.

I wish I could tell you I know of a lot of photograph collectors in their 20s and 30s, but I dont. I think thisis a reflection of the antiques business in general, not just photography. Most people that are collectingseriously are in their 40s and up. Thats when you hit your stride in terms of disposable income.

Collectors Weekly: Is the market for 19th century photographs primarily American collectors,

or is there a global interest?

Cowan: Primarily. There are European collectors that would collect an iconic 19th-century Americanimage, but primarily its an American market, and not necessarily people that are just interested in
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photography. Somebody may be interested in the history of the American West, and they recognize a greatphotograph of Dodge City, Kansas in 1870 that will go well with their Kansas collection. There are manypeople collecting the story behind the image and the history behind the image, too.

Collectors Weekly: What about markings or signatures on photographs is that a major issue?

Scarce CDV of Lincoln's Dog Fido

Cowan: It can be very frustrating at first if you see a great image, and want to know where it is, but theresno indication. A lot of 19th-centuryphotographswere mounted on card stock or a board that thephotographer imprinted his logo or address on. But there are many, many anonymous images that you find

and say, gosh, I wish I knew where that was or who this is or what this scene is.

There are some people who have cataloged photographers imprints, and theyre great sources. If youre adaguerreotype collector and you find a signed daguerreotype, you definitely must go towww.daguerreotype.com, the online database of a guy named John Craig from Connecticut. John has beena photographic dealer for 40 or 50 years. He published two massive volumes on daguerreotypes, and thenonce the Internet came around, he put them online at his own expense. Its absolutely free. Theres noadvertising on there. Hes received awards from the Daguerreian Society.
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Carl Mautz, a book publisher who lives in Nevada, publishes Western photo history books. He published abook calledBiographies of Western Photographers, and its mainly 19th-century photographers. Its awonderful reference; I use it all the time. Its a 600-page labor of love.

If youre a stereoview collector, theres one great book you want to have in your library: The World ofStereographs by William C. Darrah. Its out of print, but easy to find, and it gives you a great history of

stereo photography.

There are great overviews of the history of American photography. One is by Robert Taft, Photographyand the American Scene. It was published in the1940s, but its a classic book on the history of Americanphotography and I recommend it for anybody.Photography and the American Scene: A Social History,1839 to 1889, is also a great book. William Henry Jackson was a great photographer who began his careerin the east and ended up in Colorado. He was one of the first photographers to publish photographs of theYellowstone Country. His photographs were distributed to Congress and directly led to the creation ofYellowstone National Park.

Collectors Weekly: It seems like a lot of these photographs are ripe to put on the Web. Is

anybody doing that?

Cowan: I dont think anybody is yet. It doesnt mean it wont be done. We are going to open ourphotographic archive up beginning in 2009. We probably have 15,000 or 20,000 photographs on ourwebsite right now that people can look at from our prior auction catalogs. Arguably, weve probably soldmore 19th-century photographs than any other auction house in the country, outside of eBay, in the last 13years.

Collectors Weekly: Any other advice for people thinking about collecting 19th-century

photography?

Cowan: The same advice that I give to everybody, and its the same for any kind of antiques: collect whatyou like. Learn everything you can possibly learn. Buy the very best that you can possibly afford and be acollector, not an accumulator. Withphotographyin particular, you can collect a photograph for the

historical value of it, and collecting it for historical value, you might not care as much about its artisticmerits. If youre collecting for artistic merits, you need to learn to be a connoisseur, but if youre collectingfor historic merit, who cares?

(All images in this article courtesyCowans Auctions, Inc.)

Daile Kaplan of Swann Auction Galleries on Collecting 20th

Century Photographs

By Maribeth Keane, Collectors Weekly StaffJanuary 14th, 2009

Daile Kaplan talks about collecting 19th and 20th centuryphotographsand photobooks. Daile is Vice

President and Director of Photographs atSwann Auction Galleriesin New York. She appears regularly as

a photograph appraiser on the Antiques Roadshow, and is also featured in a series ofshort videoson fine

photographs for Swann Galleries. Daile can be contacted at [email protected] or via her

website,www.popphotographica.com, which features items from her personal collection of pop

photographica.
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William EgglestonWilliam Egglestons Guide. First edition. New York: The Museum of Modern Art,

(1976)

Swann, which is New York Citys oldest specialty auction house, was founded in the late1940sas anantiquarian book house. In the mid-1970s, as popular interest inphotographybecame more widespread, thespecialist at that time realized that Swann should have sales that featured documentary and fine artphotography as well as albums and photobooks. Until that time, auctions dedicated to photography andphoto literature were unheard of. Therefore, Swann is considered a pioneer of the photographic literaturemarket.

Today, books illustrated with photographs are garnering a lot of attention. In the past few years, there havebeen a number of excellent coffee table books about the genre by Martin Parr, Gerry Badger, and AndrewRoth. In addition, there are some very serious celebrity photobook collectors who have brought attention tothe field. An underappreciated area of collecting for many years, its now firmly on the map.

In addition to photographic literature, Swann focuses on vintage and modern 19th- and 20th-centuryphotographic prints. As artists transition to new digital technologies and examples of those prints appear ingalleries, they are offered at auction. However, we are not yet selling many digital prints. We specialize inwhat are referred to as wet darkroom prints.

Even though photography is incredibly popular today, in the 19th century and even into the 1960s it wasridiculed as an art form. Needless to say, this didnt s

Documents

A Short History of Photograph Collecting