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gallery
December 6, 2015

See 19th-Century Portraits by a Pioneering Woman Photographer

By Stephanie Eckardt

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Photo: © Marta Weiss 2015 courtesy MACK

The last time there was a museum exhibition of Julia Margaret Cameron’s photos, the year was 1865, and she was hardly a popular photographer: Her portraits were often scratched and out of focus. It’s only in the 150 years since that those features — intentional, on Cameron’s part — have gotten her recognition as one of the 19th century’s pioneering photographers. A century and a half later, her photos are back on display at the V&A in London, released along with a new book on Cameron by Marta Weiss.

Cameron shot society men and even the likes of Charles Darwin, but most often, she photographed children and younger women she knew, making them into biblical or storied subjects — mythological characters like Circe, and legends like King Arthur. Click through the slideshow to see for yourself.

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1 / 17 Photos
May Day, 1866  Photo: © Marta Weiss 2015 courtesy MACK
St. Agnes, 1864  Photo: © Marta Weiss 2015 courtesy MACK
Circe, 1865  Photo: © Marta Weiss 2015 courtesy MACK
The Five Foolish Virgins, 1864  Photo: © Marta Weiss 2015 courtesy MACK
Il Penseroso, 1864–1865  Photo: © Marta Weiss 2015 courtesy MACK
Long-suffering, Gentleness, Goodness  Photo: © Marta Weiss 2015 courtesy MACK
Charles Darwin, 1868  Photo: © Marta Weiss 2015 courtesy MACK
Summer Days, 1866  Photo: © Marta Weiss 2015 courtesy MACK
Sappho, 1865  Photo: © Marta Weiss 2015 courtesy MACK
Julia Jackson, 1867  Photo: © Marta Weiss 2015 courtesy MACK
The Passing of Arthur, 1875 From Illustrations to Tennyson's Idylls of the King, and Other Poems, Volume II. Photo: © Marta Weiss 2015 courtesy... The Passing of Arthur, 1875 From Illustrations to Tennyson's Idylls of the King, and Other Poems, Volume II. Photo: © Marta Weiss 2015 courtesy MACK/Victoria and Albert Museum, London
Kate Dore, c. 1862  Photo: © Marta Weiss 2015 courtesy MACK/Victoria and Albert Museum, London
Il Penseroso, 1865  Photo: © Marta Weiss 2015 courtesy MACK
Henry Cole, 1868  Photo: © Marta Weiss 2015 courtesy MACK
Hosanna, 1865  Photo: © Marta Weiss 2015 courtesy MACK
Annie, 1864  Photo: © Marta Weiss 2015 courtesy MACK
Paul and Virginia, 1864  Photo: © Marta Weiss 2015 courtesy MACK
1 / 17

Tags:

  • gallery
  • julia margaret cameron
  • photography

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