Artwork
Guy Little Theatrical Photograph
Guy Little Theatrical Photograph is a photographic photography by the Impressionist artist Alexander Bassano. It dates from 1893 and is held in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum.
About this work
Overview
The image is a late‑Victorian portrait of the celebrated baritone Sir Charles Santley, captured in the 1890s by the eminent studio photographer Alexander Bassano. It is an albumen print derived from a glass negative, typical of the period’s portraiture, and now resides in the Victoria and Albert Museum’s Theatre Collections.
Subject & Meaning
Sir Charles Santley, one of Britain’s most renowned operatic and concert singers, is presented in formal attire, reflecting the dignified public persona cultivated by performers of the era. The photograph serves both as a personal likeness and as a promotional image, illustrating how theatrical figures used emerging photographic media to reach audiences.
Technique & Style
The picture is an albumen print, a process that involved coating paper with egg white and silver nitrate before exposure on a glass plate negative. This method yielded fine detail and a glossy surface, qualities prized for the larger “cabinet card” format that succeeded the smaller “carte de visite” in the 1870s and remained popular through the 1890s.
History & Provenance
Originally issued as part of a series of cartes de visite and cabinet cards, the print was later removed from its original card backing and mounted in an album by the collector Guy Tristram Little (d. 1953). Little, a solicitor and avid collector of theatrical ephemera, bequeathed his assembled album to the V&A, where it now forms part of the museum’s holdings.
Artist & collection
Artist
Alexander Bassano took photographs of actors on stage and in costume during the late 1800s.
