Country House
Camera
by Christopher Simon
Sykes (Author), Nigel Nicolson (Author), Clive Aslet (Author)
A treasury of
aristocratic photography from the 1850s to 1930s from archives. Art
and literature may convey beautifully one person's perception of a
place, but a photograph is the only way to preserve the actual
reality of a scene, a moment in time and space frozen forever.
Photographs and cameras caught the imagination of the upper classes
in Victorian Britain very quickly, and so it is not surprising that
much early photography involved country houses and those that
frequented them. The earliest photographic negative in existence,
made in 1835 by William Fox Talbot, is of Lacock Abbey in Wiltshire.
Over 300 of which are reproduced here. They range from formal
portraits to hunting, shooting and fishing, early motorcars, "bright
young things" at play, gardens, servants, pets, children and
babies. Popular fashion included the Russian high collar blouse,
young ladies wearing white with hats and lingerie bonnets and many
sitters hold a dog, a rifle, flowers or a book. Lady Herbert peeps
out of the background in a photograph of her four pugs in seats on
the verandah. Queen Victoria takes lunch with the family at Windsor
Castle. Nannies and nurseries, here is all Victorian upper-class life
plus wounded soldiers and even a seaweed collector! With captions and
informative text. 9½" x 12½". 214pp
CHRISTOPHER SIMON
SYKES is a photographer and writer. He specializes in architectural
and garden photography, and writes on architecture and social
history. Sykes worked with Eric Clapton on his autobiography,
Clapton, and his work has appeared in publications such as Vogue,
Vanity Fair, Town and Country, and Architechtural Digest. He lives
with his wife and daughter in North London
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