Artwork
Guy Little Theatrical Photograph
Guy Little Theatrical Photograph is a photographic photography by Samuel Alex Walker. It dates from 1850 and is held in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum.
About this work
Overview
The image is a mid‑19th‑century portrait of the actress Phyllis Broughton, captured by photographer Samuel Alex Walker. Executed as a small albumen print, the work exemplifies the popular practice of producing collectible portrait cards for personal and public circulation during the Victorian era.
Subject & Meaning
Phyllis Broughton appears in a pose typical of theatrical portraiture, presenting herself in costume that signals her stage identity. Such images served both as personal memorabilia for admirers and as promotional material, reinforcing the public persona of performers in an age when live theatre was a primary entertainment medium.
Technique & Style
The photograph was produced from a glass negative onto an albumen paper, yielding a glossy surface and fine tonal range. Initially mounted on a stiff card bearing the photographer’s imprint, the print conforms to the dimensions of the ‘carte de visite’, a format roughly the size of a visiting card, later superseded by the larger cabinet card.
History & Provenance
The card originated in a substantial collection of cartes de visite and cabinet cards that were stripped from their original backs and compiled in albums by Guy Tristram Little, a solicitor and avid collector of ephemera. Upon his death in 1953, Little bequeathed the assemblage to the Victoria and Albert Museum, where it now forms part of the institution’s Theatre Collections.
Artist & collection
Artist
Samuel Walker spent his days tucked in the back rows of London theaters, not on stage but with a camera.
