Albumen Photography

February 6, 2003 9:25 PM

Albumen photographs: history, science, preservation and gallery.
posted by hama7 (11 comments total)

[via yakitori]
posted by hama7 at 9:26 PM on February 6, 2003

Bad-ass science and cool history aside, the picture of Abraham Lincoln is the most *human* portrait I've ever seen of him. Slightly disheveled hair, slightly bored gaze...most images we have of one of our greatest leaders are so fawning, like he's some sort of god.

Great stuff, hama7. I do enjoy reading all the political fracas-ing around here (though I don't join in), but this is the stuff I come back to MeFi for, time and again.

In local parlance, am I just supposed to put [this is cool] for the above paragraph?
posted by notsnot at 9:36 PM on February 6, 2003

Pretty, Hama, Thanks!
posted by jonson at 9:36 PM on February 6, 2003

slightly bored gaze--ah, but the depth and sadness in the eyes. They don't make presidents like that anymore.

I saw In The Summer House two years back when a Smithsonian exhibit came to town. I love George Tooker's work. How luminous and translucent his colors glow.

Egg tempera, albumen photography--the art and imagery of protein, the stuff of life.
posted by y2karl at 10:02 PM on February 6, 2003

Beautiful
posted by Dick Paris at 11:28 PM on February 6, 2003

Just lovely. It had never occured to me to wonder how this famous motion study was done. Many thanks.
posted by hippugeek at 11:55 PM on February 6, 2003

Egg tempera, albumen photography--the art and imagery of protein, the stuff of life.

Thanks for the links y2karl, I was so struck by the simplicity and homemade quality of the photographs that I almost forgot the egg tempera painters:

Andrew Wyeth is well known for his tempera paintings, and watercolors, and his son James Wyeth is too. (probably another thread?)

I love these Civil War images.
posted by hama7 at 3:48 AM on February 7, 2003

Great. Thanks hama7 :).
posted by plep at 5:24 AM on February 7, 2003

Absolutely gorgeous stuff, this Portrait of Old Japan - simply lovely. There was a striking albumen photo in the Ukiyo-e thread y2karl posted the other day that I loved, so I am so happy to find more of this type of work.
The site is a bit slow for me right now, we may be overtaxing it...but this is a bookmark for sure. Thanks hama7.
posted by madamjujujive at 5:44 AM on February 7, 2003

Great link. I loved the photos from Japan as well. But I'm left with one burning question:

When oh when will creative facial hair come back in style???
posted by jennyb at 6:48 AM on February 7, 2003

Beautiful and informative site. However, it would be much improved by a simple front-page summary or "what is albumen photography?" link explaining WTF albumen photography is.
posted by raygirvan at 5:52 PM on February 7, 2003