[Polynesia] Fifteen c. 1900 Glass Plate Negatives Documenting South Sea Islands, Culture & People

BURNETT, Frank (Images in Burnett's Style, but Possibly by an Earlier Traveler)

Edité par n.p., 1900

A propos de cet article

Fifteen c. 1900 glass plate negatives with historic images of South Sea islands, stone heads and island women, all still housed in their original Imperial Dry Plate box. We tentatively attribute this work to Frank Burnett, as the images appear to be in Burnett's photographic style (see photo captioned "An Island Belle" and others, in "Through Tropic Seas"), but also may have been photographed by another, and perhaps earlier traveler, given their glass plate format. Burnett ".began making trips to the South Pacific in 1895. He was able to retire in 1901, at which time he outfitted a schooner, the Laurel, which he used to take another trip to the Pacific, collecting artifacts along the way. This 1902 trip is described in Burnett's first book "Through Tropic Seas". He also wrote "Through Polynesia and Papua", "Summer Isles of Eden" and "The Wreck of the Tropic Bird and Other Sea Stories". MoA site. Each glass negative measures 4.75 inches tall x 6.5 inches wide or reverse, w. occasional minor scratches to emulsion, box is solid, w. light wear and a few pencil notes on top as to contents, w/o names or places being noted. n.b. we digitally colorized one of the negatives for greater clarity and detail. "His [Burnett's] photographs and use of postcards in his books provide further context to these experiences and would seem to reflect changes in his ways of seeing over twenty years of traveling. He progresses from stereotypes of the warrior male and the provocative female to portraits of natives that appear to be an attempt to illustrate what Burnett considered to be 'typical' racial types. As he ventured further away from the colonial settlements, he started to photograph cultural events that included people, places and (sometimes) objects." Curios, Collectors and Curatorial Practice by Carol E. Meyer in Journal of Museums Aotearoa. May, 2003.

N° de réf. du vendeur 3583

Détails bibliographiques

• Titre: [Polynesia] Fifteen c. 1900 Glass Plate Negatives Documenting South Sea Islands, Culture & People
• Éditeur: n.p.
• Date de parution: 1900
• Reliure: Box
• État de l'article: Near Fine
• Catalogues du vendeur:
  • Religions & Spirituality
  • Film & Photography
  • Travel & Exploration