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| [Käthe Schirmacher, German feminist, head-and-shoulders portrait, facing right] / Gottheil & Sohn, Danzig. 1893 digital image from b&w film copy neg. http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/cph.3c26741 |
Carte de Visite: what
is it? – Technical specs -
Carte de Visite is a mounted photographic format measuring 4
½ x 2 ½ inches, which gets its name from the French calling cards which they
resemble in size and were originally meant to replace (in the end they did not
end up replacing the traditional calling card).[i]
Portraits were the popular subject matter of cartes de visite; however, the
format was also used to distribute images of famous works of art, monuments,
and fashion.[ii]
Typically cartes de visite were made using wet collodion
negatives used to create paper prints which were then mounted on a cardboard or
Bristol board mount.[iii] Albumen prints were most commonly used;
however, any paper printing process could be used to create a carte de visite. PMC
warns of the danger of misidentifying images based upon format rather than
process. Misidentification can lead to incorrect dating as well as improper
care. One of the characteristics of the carte de visite is the printed information
regarding the photograph studio which is found on the bottom of the front side
of the card as well as on the back. It was not unusual for the back of the
carte de visite to be printed in an elaborate manner. At the time, the printing
of studio information on the back of the card was viewed by the photographers
as a form of advertising. Today this printing allows for the identification of
the photographer and/or studio. [iv]
 |
| Carte-de-visite (front and back) of Lambert Partington, photographer, Southport (http://www.ephemera-society.org.uk/articles/cartes.html) |
History: invention
and popularity -
In 1854 André Adolphe-Eugène Disdéri patented the carte de
visite. The carte de visite was produced through the use of multiple lens cameras
that made it possible to produce four or more images on a single plate. The implications
of this invention played a key role in the rising popularity of cartes de
visite during the latter half of the 19th century. Multiple lens
cameras typically had four to eight lenses and a movable plate holder. The
photographer could then produce a contact print with the multiple images which
were cut apart and mounted onto the cards. These innovations allowed
photographers to take multiple images per plate which in turn increased greatly
increased the number of prints they could produce. Furthermore, the process of assembling the
cards did not require the level of skill which had been necessary to produce
the labor intensive daguerreotypes.[v]
By the end of the 19th century, larger photography studios were
employing the use of steam powered machines to expose, print, and fix cartes de
visite and other card mounted photographs.[vi]
The final result was a format that was cheaper, faster, more easily reproduced,
relatively more durable, and more portable than previous photographic formats.
 |
|
Carte-de-Viste
camera
|
For more information on multiple lens cameras: http://www.powerhousemuseum.com/collection/database/?irn=410324
The big picture
surrounding the carte de visite -
The carte de visite format is an excellent illustration of
the increasing role which photography began to play in society during the late
19th century as both a personal portrait medium and a medium of the
mass media. Cartes de visite illustrate the way in which photography changed
our methods and expectations of recording the world around us, both publically
and privately. The huge success of this format in regards to portraiture in
general, and more particularly portraiture of the middle class, illustrates the
way in which photography contributed to the process of people recording their
personal lives. The inexpensive nature and relative durability of the carte de visite
format allowed people to create a visual record of their familial and social
networks.
These same factors made the carte de visite an ideal format
for the production and distribution of images of public figures on a massive
scale. In addition to collecting the images of their friends and families, the
average person in the late 19th century could also collect the
images of the well-known religious, political, military, and entertainment celebrities
of the day.[vii]
Popular carte de visite subjects included Abraham Lincoln and Queen Victoria.[viii]
Sojourner Truth.
Carte de visite (seated), 1864.
Gladstone Collection, Prints and Photographs Division.
Reproduction Number: LC-USZC4-6165 (3-11b)
Carte de visite (seated), 1864.
Gladstone Collection, Prints and Photographs Division.
Reproduction Number: LC-USZC4-6165 (3-11b)
Sojourner Truth is an example of a public figure that used the
carte de visite to support herself as well as to promote her cause (http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/aaohtml/exhibit/aopart3.html).
The following short article is geared towards the use of photography in the
classroom. It raises interesting questions to think about in terms of how
archivists and librarians interact with photographs when describing, providing
access, and educating researchers through reference: http://picturinghistory.gc.cuny.edu/item.php?item_id=176.
The collection craze surrounding cartes de visite in the
mid- to late-19th century also led to the production of photo albums
designed to specifically store and display individuals’ collections. The cartes
de visite found in historical collections today are often found in these
albums. I recommend reading page 124 of Bertrand Lavedrine’s Photographs of the Past: Process and
Preservation for information regarding the care and preservation of these
albums. Particularly interesting is the discussion regarding the balance
between preserving the album as a whole document while continuing to meet the preservation
needs of the individual cartes de visite within the album. Albums also present
their own set of challenges regarding the creation and presentation of digital
copies. The following is an example of one of these albums which has been
digitized by the Smithsonian Institute: http://www.sil.si.edu/imagegalaxy/imageGalaxy_MoreImages.cfm?book_id=SIL-007-343.
By scanning each album page as a whole and then scanning each individual carte
de visite on the page, this method provides the users with a sense of the
context in which the cartes de visite exist within the album. While the
navigation from one page or image to another is clunky, the general
presentation, which allows the user to have a sense of the album as a whole, is
well done, while also providing a detailed look at the individual cartes de
visite.
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