Folio Archives 57: Travels of a Victorian Photographer by Francis Frith 2001
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1wcarter
Travels of a Victorian Photographer by Francis Frith 2001
The first photo ever taken was of the rooftops of Paris in 1839. In 1855, only 16 years later, Francis Frith started taking photos. Over the next 30 years he wandered around Britain as a professional photographer. This book contains over 100 of these photos, from Cornwall to Scotland.
The text of the book is by numerous contemporary writers, describing the countryside, cities and people photographed by Frith. They include the famous (eg. Beatrix Potter, James Hardy, Charles Dickens) and non-entities who had regional knowledge (eg. local clergymen).
Scenes depicted include the expected churches and monuments, but also people going about their daily lives as pedestrians in major cities, and their recreations (eg. rowing on the Cam).
The 298 page book is housed in a plain dark green slipcase 27x20 cm. The various texts have been selected and edited by Roger Hudson. It is bound in dark green buckram, blocked with photos on the front cover, and with a gilt title on the spine. The front and back endpapers show scenes of Brighton beach and central London. The paper is semi-gloss Fineblade Smooth, a requirement for the printing of the photos.
It gives a fascinating insight into a long lost style of life over 150 years ago.
Front endpaper
Back endpaper
Prospectus clipping
An index of the other illustrated reviews in the "Folio Archives" series can be viewed here.
The first photo ever taken was of the rooftops of Paris in 1839. In 1855, only 16 years later, Francis Frith started taking photos. Over the next 30 years he wandered around Britain as a professional photographer. This book contains over 100 of these photos, from Cornwall to Scotland.
The text of the book is by numerous contemporary writers, describing the countryside, cities and people photographed by Frith. They include the famous (eg. Beatrix Potter, James Hardy, Charles Dickens) and non-entities who had regional knowledge (eg. local clergymen).
Scenes depicted include the expected churches and monuments, but also people going about their daily lives as pedestrians in major cities, and their recreations (eg. rowing on the Cam).
The 298 page book is housed in a plain dark green slipcase 27x20 cm. The various texts have been selected and edited by Roger Hudson. It is bound in dark green buckram, blocked with photos on the front cover, and with a gilt title on the spine. The front and back endpapers show scenes of Brighton beach and central London. The paper is semi-gloss Fineblade Smooth, a requirement for the printing of the photos.
It gives a fascinating insight into a long lost style of life over 150 years ago.
Front endpaper
Back endpaper
Prospectus clipping
An index of the other illustrated reviews in the "Folio Archives" series can be viewed here.
2kdweber
>1 wcarter: Enabled!
4boldface
>1 wcarter:
It's a very nice book and the the third in a uniform series that began with English Journey by J. B. Priestley, with contemporary (i.e. 1920s/30s) photographs, published in 1997, and continued in 1999 with Betjemen's Britain which has 105 photographs by John Piper, Edwin Smith, Bill Brandt, et al. Folio 60, in the Priestley listing, says, "The printing of the photographs has been undertaken with great care, to retain and, if possible, improve the contrast and clarity of the originals."
It's a very nice book and the the third in a uniform series that began with English Journey by J. B. Priestley, with contemporary (i.e. 1920s/30s) photographs, published in 1997, and continued in 1999 with Betjemen's Britain which has 105 photographs by John Piper, Edwin Smith, Bill Brandt, et al. Folio 60, in the Priestley listing, says, "The printing of the photographs has been undertaken with great care, to retain and, if possible, improve the contrast and clarity of the originals."
5Chawton
Curious comment above referring to 'non-entities who had regional knowledge (eg. local clergymen)'.
Historically in England clergymen would generally be graduates of Oxford or Cambridge and as clergymen would often be the only source of enlightenment and University education in their community.
Historically in England clergymen would generally be graduates of Oxford or Cambridge and as clergymen would often be the only source of enlightenment and University education in their community.
6wcarter
>5 Chawton:
They may have been well educated, but they were not famous outside their own community.
They may have been well educated, but they were not famous outside their own community.
7Chawton
Like Jonathan Swift or Gilbert White or William Gilpin or George Crabbe or Sidney Smith or Lawrence Sterne or Thomas Malthus perhaps?
8wcarter
>7 Chawton:
None of those you mention wrote any of the essays in this book, but the “well known” Revs. Stopford Brooke, and Francis Kilvert did.
None of those you mention wrote any of the essays in this book, but the “well known” Revs. Stopford Brooke, and Francis Kilvert did.
9HuxleyTheCat
>8 wcarter: I've never heard of Stopford Brooke, but Kilvert is sufficiently significant for me to have owned a copy of his diary while I was still in primary school.
ETA - https://blackwells.co.uk/bookshop/product/Kilverts-Diary-1870-1879-by-William-Pl...
ETA - https://blackwells.co.uk/bookshop/product/Kilverts-Diary-1870-1879-by-William-Pl...
10podaniel
>9 HuxleyTheCat:
Back in the late '70s, FS published "Journal of a Country Curate" by one Francis Kilvert.
Back in the late '70s, FS published "Journal of a Country Curate" by one Francis Kilvert.
11folio_books
>10 podaniel:
They did, and it's a great read, though heavily abridged. I'm sure Huxley is aware of its existence.
They did, and it's a great read, though heavily abridged. I'm sure Huxley is aware of its existence.
12HuxleyTheCat
>11 folio_books: Now you mention it.. :-) My increasingly elderly brain tends to get confused when Folio indulges in subtle (or otherwise) name changes. When I see the name Kilvert, the old grey matter automatically adds Diary.
13Africansky1
Thanks for this . I have this FS book . Love it . Re the subject matter , Peter Quennell did a Batsford Publication 1937 , called Victorian Panorama a survey of Life and Fashion from contemporary photographs . Well worth acquiring and fits in with the Frith.
14sviswanathan
This looks like a wonderful volume. Thank you for posting!
15Africansky1
OT for FS but on topic for this discussion . I have just bought another superb book of historical photographs . "Times Gone By A photographic record of Great Britain 1856- 1956 , from the archives of the Radio Times Hulton Picture archive " published by Marshall Cavendish , 1977 ISBN 085685316X . recommended
