Mathias Häusermann

Art Historical Context

**Mathias Häusermann** is a striking portrait by Swiss photographer Franz Antoine, created in the 1850s–60s. Capturing the seated figure of Mathias Häusermann amid books and a table, this image exemplifies mid-19th-century bourgeois portraiture, where subjects often posed with symbols of intellect and status to convey their social standing. Antoine's work reflects the era's fascination with photography as a democratizing art form, allowing everyday individuals like Häusermann to achieve a lasting visual legacy. Printed as an albumen silver print from a glass negative, the photograph showcases the technical innovations of its time. Albumen, derived from egg whites, coated the paper to produce sharp details, rich tonal range, and warm sepia hues—hallmarks of the medium that dominated photography from the 1840s to the 1890s. At 36.9 x 32.3 cm, its substantial size allowed for intimate viewing, emphasizing the subject's dignified presence and the meticulous studio setup. Housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Photographs Department (David Hunter McAlpin Fund, 1948), this piece highlights photography's rapid evolution from novelty to fine art. It invites us to ponder how such images preserved personal stories during a transformative age of industrialization and scientific progress.

About the Artist

Franz Antoine · 1815–1886

Franz Antoine (1815–1886) was an Austrian botanist and horticulturalist who served as court gardener at the Imperial Gardens of Schönbrunn in Vienna, one of the most celebrated horticultural establishments in nineteenth-century Europe. His career unfolded at the intersection of scientific botany and the decorative arts of the garden, positioning him as a key figure in the cultivation and documenta...