Articles of China

1844

William Henry Fox Talbot English, 1800 - 1877

Not On View

Articles of China: 1 of Collection Gallery

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About the Artwork

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Markings

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Provenance

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Exhibition History

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Published References

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Catalogue Raisonné

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Credit Line for Reproduction

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About the Artwork

Talbot was the inventor of negative/positive photography. Unlike the more limited daguerreotype, which created a single image on a silvered copper plate, Talbot’s process involved a paper negative from which multiple positive images could be printed on paper. Talbot was the author of “The Pencil of Nature,” the first book to be illustrated with photographs. With this publication Talbot intended to detail the events and experiments that led to his discovery of the calotype process, expose the public to the fledgling medium, and suggest a variety of possible uses for photographs beyond portraiture. Talbot’s text for this still life specifically stresses the value of photography for record keeping and cataloguing collections.

Title Articles of China

Artwork Date 1844

Artist William Henry Fox Talbot

Life Dates 1800 - 1877

Nationality Please note: Definitions for nationality may vary significantly, depending on chronology and world events. Some definitions include: Belonging to a people having a common origin based on a geography and/or descent and/or tradition and/or culture and/or religion and/or language, or sharing membership in a legally defined nation. English

Culture Please note: Cultures may be defined by the language, customs, religious beliefs, social norms, and material traits of a group. Unknown

Medium Salted paper print from a calotype negative

Dimensions Sheet: 7 1/4 × 8 3/4 inches (18.4 × 22.2 cm)

Classification Photographs

Department Prints, Drawings & Photographs

Credit Founders Society Purchase, Lee and Tina Hills Graphic Arts Fund

Accession Number This unique number is assigned to an individual artwork as part of the cataloguing process at the time of entry into the permanent collection. Most frequently, accession numbers begin with the year in which the artwork entered the museum’s holdings. For example, 2008.3 refers to the year of acquisition and notes that it was the 3rd of that year. The DIA has a few additional systems—no longer assigned—that identify specific donors or museum patronage groups. 1991.3

Markings

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Provenance

1991-present, purchase by the Detroit Institute of Arts (Detroit, Michigan, USA)

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Exhibition History

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Published References

Sharp, E. "A note on William Henry Fox Talbot and The Pencil of Nature." Bulletin of the DIA 66, no. 4 (1991): 42-46, fig. 1 (ill.).

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Catalogue Raisoneé

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Credit Line for Reproduction

William Henry Fox Talbot, Articles of China, 1844, salted paper print from a calotype negative. Detroit Institute of Arts, Founders Society Purchase, Lee and Tina Hills Graphic Arts Fund, 1991.3.