Untitled (Pair of Portraits)

About the Artwork

This couple paid extra to have their portraits vitrified on enamel, a more permanent process than photographs on paper. The photographer would shoot a collodion negative on glass, then produce a positive version, possibly on glass. That would have been sent to a commercial firm which fused the images onto a glasslike coating on metal, a process fairly common in the late 1800s but now used primarily for grave headstones. The portraits were usually inset into a fancy box or tabletop frame for display in the couple’s home but could be made into portable mementos like the pocket-sized leather case.