Edwin Booth (1833-1893) 1869 - 1874

Curator: This is a portrait of Edwin Booth, taken sometime between 1869 and 1874 by Jeremiah Gurney. It's an albumen print, quite a common photographic process of the time. He's depicted in costume, presumably for one of his roles. Editor: He looks lost in thought. Melancholy, even. The sepia tones just amplify that sense of historical distance and introspection. Curator: He was quite the Hamlet, by all accounts. Haunted, brooding... his family history was certainly dramatic enough to fuel such portrayals. Editor: Tell me about it! His brother, John Wilkes Booth. The elephant in every room, no doubt. It’s remarkable to consider the social and cultural implications surrounding portraiture in the late 19th century – the industry it fuelled! A printed photo traded like currency almost. Curator: Indeed, portraiture was booming, but what strikes me here is the attempt to elevate a humble photo-portrait. It is, technically, quite a simple image, but his pose! Almost classical, yet deeply personal. I wonder if the materiality – the albumen print itself – had anything to do with how widely available and commodified such portraits were? Did they become cheapened, as a result? Editor: Precisely. And it's that tension, that question, that makes the image so resonant. An easily reproduced photographic material contrasts to his performance, one requiring dedication and training and often the source for romanticising fame at a distance! What's so haunting, in the literal sense, is considering the amount of hands this very photograph may have gone through during the period, passed around for decades perhaps… Curator: A haunting thought. It certainly adds layers to the image, and I hadn't quite considered it that way. These photos have circulated more than we might appreciate at first glance. Editor: Which, I think, highlights its fascinating complexities as an object and record in time. An actor made immortal not on stage, but captured and distributed as an affordable memento for years to come. Curator: Beautifully put. It is a poignant reminder that even the most intimate portrayal exists within a web of material production, distribution, and ultimately, interpretation.