Untitled (Portrait of a Man)
1846
Medium
Daguerreotype
Dimensions
8.2 × 6.9 cm (3 1/4 × 2 3/4 in.); Open case: 9.2 × 15.8 × 1 cm (3 5/8 × 6 1/4 × 7/16 in.); Case: 9.2 × 7.9 × 1.7 cm (3 5/8 × 3 1/8 × 11/16 in.); Plate: 8.3 × 7 cm (3 1/4 × 2 3/4 in.)
Classification
portrait
Department
Photography and Media
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
249917
Art Historical Context
Step into the nascent world of photography with *Untitled (Portrait of a)*, a daguerre created in 1846 by an unknown maker. This intimate captures a solemn male subject in exquisite detail, housed in a protective case typical of the era. Measuring just 8.2 × 6.9 cm, the plate's diminutive made it portable and affordable, revolutionizing personal portraiture for the middle class. The daguerreotype process, patented by Louis Daguerre in 1839 popularized worldwide by the 1840s, produced-of-a-kind images on silvered copper plates. Exposed to mercury vapor and chemically fixed, these mirror-like p...