514
popularity with studios going up everywhere, extend-
ing further throughout the world. At the same time,
photography still had not been fully recognized as
an art form. Though photography was accepted into
the 1859 Salon, it was isolated from the other artistic
media, which were exhibited concurrently in the same
building. The photography component, which was of-
fi cially the third exhibition of the Société française de
photographie, could only be accessed through a separate
entrance. It was comprised solely of photographs; there
was no equipment. The two exhibitions had their own
catalogues which were similar in format, but neither
mentioned the other exhibition.
The 1867 Exposition Universelle embodied the
general consensus on the status of photography in the
1860s. It was held again in the center of Paris on the
Champs-du-Mars between the Quay d’Orsay and the
Ecole Militaire. This time the fi ne arts and industry were
housed in the same main Palais which was surrounded
by many smaller exhibition buildings that formed an
exposition park. Photography was placed in Classe 9,
“Material and Application of the Liberal Arts” in its own
section, “Photographic Prints and Equipment.” Physi-
cally and psychologically, photography held a position
somewhere between art and industry. The exhibition
space was again divided by country, but all photogra-
phy exhibits were located along the same gridded ring
in the Palais making it easier to compare the different
countries’ submissions. Over 650 exhibitors showed
in this category. The majority was French and British,
with other entries from numerous European countries,
Russia, the United States, Canada, Algeria, and Turkey.
The photographs shown were generally similar in type to
those found at the 1855 Exposition Universelle. Some of
the new types included equestrian portraits, geographic
views, images of China, and greatly enlarged panoramic
photographs. Many of the same photographers who
had also exhibited in 1855 exhibited or participated as
jurors in 1867.
Much of the 1867 commentary highlighted the
technical achievements. There was great concern about
the vulnerability of photographs and a strong desire to
increase their longevity. New carbon techniques which
promised permanency were exhibited. The Woodbury-
type was seen as another important technical develop-
ment. Other photographers were experimenting with
diverse materials and uses for photography including:
miniatures that could be used for jewelry, photographs
on enamel, and portraits on porcelain. The fi rm Geymet
and Alker was developing new, more portable equip-
ment that could be used by the “tourist photographer.”
A Mr. Johnson from the United States exhibited a
panotoscopic camera that could be used for groups and
landscapes at a great range as well as to better capture
skies and clouds.The photography exhibitions at the 1855 and 1867
Expositions Universelles brought photography to the
attention of a public that was larger and geographically
more far reaching than ever before. They promoted a
fairly broad range of photography’s potential applica-
tions and also served as a forum for the ongoing nine-
teenth-century debate over its status as an art form.
Carolyn Peter
See also: Daguerreotype; Calotype and Talbotype;
Wet Collodion Negative; Sherlock, William;
Diamond, Hugh Welch; Rousseau, Louis; Moulin,
Félix-Jacques-Antoine; Mission Héliographique;
Braun, Adolphe; Blanquart-Evard, Louis-Désiré;
Disdéri, André-Adolphe-Eugène, Nadar (Gaspard-
Félix Tournachon); Le Gray, Gustave; Giroux, André,
Le Secq, Henri; Llewelyn, John Dillwyn; Société
française de photographie; and Woodburytype,
Woodburygravure.Further Reading
D’Aligny, Henry F.Q., “Photographs and Photographic Appara-
tus,” Paris Universal Exposition, 1867, Reports of the United
States Commissioners, Washington, D.C.: Government Print-
ing Offi ce, vol. V, 1869, 5–19.
Davanne, M.A., “Classe 9, Épreuves et Appareils de Photogra-
phie, [Class 9, Photographic Prints and Equipment]” Expo-
sition Universelle de 1867, Rapports du Jury International
[1867 Universal Exposition, Reports of the International
Jury], Paris: Imprimerie Administrative de Paul Dupont, vol.
2, 1868.
Exposition Universelle de 1867, à Paris, Catalogue Offi ciel des
Exposants Récompensées par le jury international [1867
Paris Universal Exposition, Offi cial Catalogue of Exhibitors
Awarded by the International Jury], 2nd Ed., reviewed and
corrected, Paris: E. Entu, Libraire-Éditeur, 1868.
Gasser, Martin, “Between ‘From Today, Painting is Dead,’ and
‘How the Sun Became a Painter,’” Image, vol. 33, nos. 3–4,
Winter 1990–91, 9–28.
Gautier, Hippolyte, Curiositiés de l’Exposition universelle de
1867 suivi d’un indicateur pratique des moyens de transport,
des prix d’entrée, etc. [Curiosities of the 1867 Universal
Exposition, followed by a practical guide of methods of
transport and prices of entry, etc.], Paris: Ch. Delagrave et
Cie, Lib-Editeurs, 78 rue des écoles, 1867.
Greenhalgh, Paul, Ephemeral Vistas, Manchester: Manchester
University Press, 1988.
Mainardi, Patricia, Art and Politics of the Second Empire, The
Universal Expositions of 1855 and 1867, New Haven and
London: Yale University Press, 1987.
Peter, Carolyn, But is it Art?: The 1855 Paris Universal Exposition
and the Status of Photography as an Art Form, MA Report,
Courtauld Institute of Art, University of London, 1991 (not
published).
Rapport sur L’Exposition universelle de 1855 présenté à
l’Empereur par S.A.I. le prince Napoléon, président de la
commission [Report of the 1855 Universal Exposition, Pre-
sented to the Emperor by Prince Napoleon], Paris: Imprimerie
Impérial, 1857.
Rouillé, André, La Photographie en France: Textes et Contro-
verses: une Anthologie, 1816–1871 [Photography in France:EXPOSITIONS UNIVERSELLE, PARIS
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