1402
to Nadar, who was more familiar with the work of
Charles Deburau and his father, Baptiste. Nadar used
his infl uence to have the series, submitted under the
name “Nadar jeune,” exhibited at the 1855 Exposition
universelle where it won a fi rst-class medal. In a review
published in 1856 in Photographic Sketches (Esquisses
photographiques), Ernest Lacan praised the works for
the emotional quality of the mime’s body and face.
Like most critics and historians, he saw the works as
a collaboration and attributed the works to “Messrs.
Tournachon and Co.”
Yet this collaboration was not to last. Nadar left the
studio by mid-January 1855 and in October, Adrien, with
two new backers, opened a studio, Tournachone Nadar
et Companie, at 17 Boulevard des Italiens. Because
Adrien was working as Nadar jeune, often minimizing
the jeune to “jne” written in small type and in Nadar’s
celebrated script, Nadar was forced to exhibit under the
name Nadar aîné. Despite Nadar’s repeated requests
and fi nancial incentives, Adrien refused to stop using
Nadar jeune until Nadar sued him to claim the name
exclusively for himself and his family. Nadar also
claimed authorship of their photographs and attempted
to recoup money invested in their studio. By January
1856, Nadar opened a studio and signed works Nadar
et Cie/Nadar Société de Photographie Artistique 113
R. St. Lazare” and “Nadar/113, rue St. Lazare, pas de
succursale” (Nadar/113 rue St. Lazre, no branches) in
reference to Adrien. Although Adrien won the fi rst suit
in 1856, he lost the December 12, 1857, appeal, with the
court declaring Félix “the only, the true Nadar.”
Adrien’s new studio was initially successful and in
1855, he became a member of the Société française de
photographie. However, by 1858 his studio was bank-
rupt. He tried to appeal the court’s ruling, but was denied
in June 1859. Later that year, the estranged brothers
were reunited due to their mother’s illness. She died
in February 1860 and, as a last wish, asked Nadar to
help Adrien with his fl oundering career. Nadar settled
some of his debts and purchased Adrien’s photographic
equipment, even though he had paid for most of it six
years earlier.
Between 1862 and 1864, Adrien ran a new studio
with J.P. Johannes at 124, avenue des Champs-Elysées,
where he created portraits of animals, such as angora
goats and horses. In April 1867, Adrien opened a fi rm
dedicated to photographic enamels, which failed and
was closed by 1872. He continued to produce work and
exhibited with the Société des Artistes Françaises at the
Salon of 1884. In 1893 Adrien entered the retirement
home at Sainte-Perrine, then the pension Galignani at
Neuilly, where he was treated for mental illness. He
spent his last decade in mental institutions before dying
on January 24th, 1903.
Since the late 1970s, historians have reevaluated
Adrien’s photographic legacy. Comparing photographs
made by the two brothers reveals both their differences
and the extent of their collaboration. While Nadar’s role
has been acknowledged in works signed exclusively by
Adrien, it is also clear that Adrien signifi cantly contrib-
uted to works made by the two.
Jennifer FarrellBiography
Alban-Adrien Tournachon born 1825 to Victor Tour-
nachon and Thérèse Maillet in Paris. Younger brother
of Gaspard-Félix Tournachon, known as Nadar. Adrien
studied photography with Gustave Le Grey. Between
1853 and 1854, Adrien created physiognomic studies
for Dr. Guillaume-Benjamin-Armand Duchenne, known
as the founder of electrotherapy. In early 1854, Adrien
opened a studio at 11 Boulevard des Capucines, partially
funded by his brother, Nadar. They worked together
for four months between until December and produced
portraits of artists, friends, and clients. Their celebrated
photographs were of the mime Charles Deburau as Pier-
rot, which were exhibited at the Exposition universelle
in 1855. The brothers acrimoniously split and Nadar
left the studio in January of 1855. In 1856, the brothers
went to court over Adrien’s use of the name “Nadar
jeune” and fi nancial issues. Adrien won the initial trial,
Nadar eventually gained exclusive rights to the name.
Adrien received acclaim for his animal portraits, yet
his subsequent studios failed. In 1893, Adrien entered
a retirement home for mental illness. He died on Janu-
ary 24, 1903.
See also: Société française de photographie; and
Nadar (Gaspard-Félix Tournachon).Further Reading
Hambourg, Maria Morris (ed.), Nadar, New York:T he Metropoli-
tan Museum of Art, 1995 (exhibition catalogue).
Jammes, André, “Duchenne de Boulogne, La Grimace Provoquée
et Nadar.” Gazette des Beaux-Arts 6,17 (1978): 215.
McCauley, Elizabeth Anne, Industrial Madness, Commerical
Photography in Paris, 1848–1871, New Haven, CT: Yale
University Press, 1994.TOWLER, JOHN (1811–1889)
Born in Yorkshire, England, on 20th June 1811, Towler
was educated in Yorkshire, Germany and Cambridge.
He migrated to the United States in 1850.
The Silver Sunbeam: A Practical and Theoretical
Text-Book on Sun Drawing and Photographic Printing:
Comprehending all the Wet and Dry Processes at present
Known, with Collodion, Albumen, Gelatine, Wax, Resin,
and Silver; fi rst appeared in 1864, from the New York
publishing house of Joseph H Ladd. It became one of