Rice Fields
1870s–80s
Medium
Albumen silver print from glass negative with applied color
Dimensions
19.4 x 24.3 cm (7 5/8 x 9 9/16 in.)
Classification
Photographs
Department
Photographs
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Purchase, The Horace W. Goldsmith Foundation Gift, through Joyce and Robert Menschel, 1991
Accession Number
1991.1204
Tags
Art Historical Context
Step into the lush, verdant world of *Rice Fields*, a captivating albumen silver print from 1870s–80s, now housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Photographs Department. This 19.4 x 24.3 cm image, enhanced with delicately applied color, transports viewers to a serene rural landscape dominated by terraced rice paddies. The unknown photographer masterfully captures the rhythmic patterns of agriculture—vibrant green fields stretching toward distant hills—evoking the timeless harmony between humans and nature in what appears to be an East Asian setting. Created using a glass negative, a hallm...
About the Artist
Unknown
The artist designated as "Unknown" in our virtual museum's collection exemplifies a poignant chapter in art history: creators whose identities have faded into obscurity despite the enduring power of their work. With only one known artwork attributed to them in our holdings, this figure represents countless anonymous hands that shaped visual culture across centuries. Museums worldwide, including th...