Getting started with the collection:
Portrait of Sir John Herschel
Julia Margaret Cameron (mentioned on object), 1867
The reason why this portrait is out of focus is not because its maker was a ‘mere’ amateur unskilled in photography. Cameron deliberately adjusted her lens so that the image would not be sharp. In order to be ‘art’, a photograph should not merely copy reality as exactly as possible. Cameron is the most famous 19th-century photographer who used blurriness to achieve an artistic effect.
- Artwork typephotograph
- Object numberRP-F-F80052
- Dimensionsheight 355 mm x width 279 mm, height 537 mm x width 434 mm
- Physical characteristicsalbuminedruk