Artwork
Guy Little Theatrical Photograph
Guy Little Theatrical Photograph is a photographic photography by Emile Tourtin. It dates from 1850 and is held in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum.
About this work
Overview
This portrait photograph depicts the actress Mlle Richemberg, captured in the Victorian era when photography was emerging as a popular medium for personal and theatrical imagery. The image was originally produced as a small-format print, typical of the period’s collectible portrait cards.
Subject & Meaning
Mlle Richemberg, a stage performer of the time, is shown in a pose that reflects the conventions of theatrical portraiture, offering a glimpse into the visual culture surrounding actors and their public personas during the late 19th century.
Technique & Style
The picture is an albumen print made from a glass negative, a standard process for both cartes de visite and cabinet cards. These prints were adhered to a stiff card bearing the photographer’s imprint, providing a durable yet portable format for personal exchange.
History & Provenance
The photograph formed part of a larger assemblage of cartes de visite and cabinet cards that were later removed from their original backs and bound into albums by Guy Tristram Little, a solicitor and avid collector of ephemera. Upon his death in 1953, Little bequeathed the collection to the Victoria and Albert Museum.
Context
During the 1860s, cartes de visite—small visiting-card-sized portraits—became a widespread fad, with millions produced for personal exchange and collection. By the late 1870s, the larger cabinet card supplanted them, before both formats were eventually eclipsed by postcards and studio portraiture in the 1890s.
Artist & collection
Artist
Emile Tourtin spent his days inside London’s old theaters, camera in hand, waiting for the actors to pause between scenes.
