High Rock Spring
c. 1865
Medium
Albumen print
Dimensions
Image: 7.7 × 5.6 cm (3 1/16 × 2 1/4 in.); Card: 10 × 6.2 cm (3 15/16 × 2 1/2 in.)
Classification
photographic process
Department
Photography and Media
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
33453
Art Historical Context
Deloss Barnum’s *High Rock Spring*, created around 1865, offers a glimpse into the early days of photography as both a documentary tool and an artistic medium. This delicate albumen print captures the quiet presence of a natural spring, rendered with the soft tonal gradations characteristic of the process. Measuring just 7.7 by 5.6 centimeters, the image was likely intended for personal albums or cartes-de-visite, formats that brought photographic views into everyday Victorian homes. Albumen prints like this one relied on egg-white coatings to produce crisp detail and rich contrast on paper, ...