Augustine Stoïkoff; Coralli
Medium
Albumen silver print from glass negative
Dimensions
Image: 7 3/8 × 9 1/4 in. (18.8 × 23.5 cm) Album page: 10 3/8 × 13 3/4 in. (26.3 × 35 cm)
Classification
Photographs
Department
Photographs
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gilman Collection, Gift of The Howard Gilman Foundation, 2005
Accession Number
2005.100.588.1.134
Art Historical Context
In 1864, French photographer André-Adolpheugène Disdéri *Augustine Stoïk; Coralli* using the albumen silver print process from a glass negative, hallmark of mid-19th-century photography This 7⅜ × 9¼-inch image, mounted on a larger album page, exemplifies the's shift toward accessible portraiture. Disdéri, a pioneer in the field, revolutionized photography by popularizing the *carte de visite*—compact calling-card portraits that swept Europe and America, making celebrity images collectible souvenirs. The albumen print, coated with egg whites for a glossy sheen and rich tonal depth, allowed for...
About the Artist
André-Adolphe-Eugène Disdéri · 1819–1889
**André-Adolphe-Eugène Disdéri** (1819–1889) was a pioneering French photographer whose innovations transformed portraiture into a mass medium during the Second Empire. Born on March 28, 1819, in Paris, Disdéri pursued diverse careers in commerce, acting, and politics early on, while studying art amid personal hardships following his father's death, which compelled him to support his mother, sibli...