Versailles, Vase
Medium
Albumen print
Dimensions
Image: 21.8 × 17.6 cm (8 5/8 × 6 15/16 in.); Paper: 21.8 × 17.9 cm (8 5/8 × 7 1/16 in.)
Classification
albumen silver print
Department
Photography and Media
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
124319
Art Historical Context
Jean-Eugène-Auguste Atget created this albumen silver print in 1905 as part of his extensive documentation of French landmarks, including the gardens and architecture of Versailles. Working during a period of rapid urban change in France, Atget sought to record historic sites before they were altered or lost, producing thousands of photographs that served as visual archives for artists, designers, and institutions. His images of Versailles capture the grandeur of the royal estate with quiet precision, emphasizing sculptural details like this ornate vase against the palace grounds. Atget’s use...
About the Artist
Jean-Eugène-Auguste Atget · 1857–1927
Jean-Eugène-Auguste Atget was born on February 12, 1857, in Libourne, France, to working-class parents—a carriage maker father who died in 1862 and a mother who passed away soon after, orphaning him at age six or seven. Raised by his maternal grandparents in Bordeaux, Atget briefly pursued a seafaring life before moving to Paris in the late 1870s to study acting at the Conservatoire d'art dramatiq...