panama–pacificinternationalexposition

I am puzzled why the George Eastman House and other museums exhibit their Autochromes in their present diminished condition: few museums would ever allow their treasured oil paintings to deteriorate in a similar way. I believe that museums with historic photographs should make restoration copies —especially before any further deterioration can take place— and exhibit them alongside the originals. These photographers to whom we are indebted certainly expected the same results when their photos were returned from the processor as we do today: bright, true colors, proper exposure and latitude, and an undamaged image. We must assume that this is what they did obtain, so resigning these plates to simply accept 100 years of deterioration is unfair to the photographers' original vision and results.

Thanks for your comment. When we make scans and reproductions of photographs in the collection it is our policy to try and duplicate the object as it is now. While we have some idea of how a photograph may have looked when it was first made, we cannot be sure, and feel it is more important to represent the collection in its current condition. Your idea, to make a copy of the autochrome, color correct it in Photoshop and then display it next to the original, is a good one. However, if we were to embark on such a project we would need to know what an autochrome looked like when it was first made. Unfortunately one of the dyes used in the process came from a fish that is now extinct. While other dyes might be usable we will never be able to recreate it exactly as it was.

Jessica, Thank you for your thoughtful response. Could you share with us what type of scanner or method that the George Eastman House uses to scan/reproduce your Autochromes? I for one have few choices locally and would appreciate your input.

Jessica, This photo is actually the Palace of Horticulture, Panama-Pacific International Exposition held in San Francisco, California in 1915. Not the Pan American Exposition held in Buffalo, New York (1901). If you have photos of the Pan American Expo, please post some. I don't think I've ever seen any from the George Eastman collection. Keep up the good work, the photos you've posted so far, like the WW1 and Autochrome photos, have been great. Thanks.

Thanks Pete! I'll forward your notes to our archivists.. do you happen to have any other photo documentation of the Palace of Horticulture? (Those archivists love it when I can hand them evidence to back my wild claims of incorrectitude ;)

What a great looking wee car!

Aviator Art Smith in a Harley-Davidson Baby Cup race car built for board racing by Maggini & Perkins at the 1915 Panama-Pacific International Exposition (PPIE) in San Francisco. "Maggini" was Al Maggini and "Perkins" was famed motorcyclist Dudley Perkins (Dud Perkins). See www.jstokstad.com/Legends/Motorcycle.com/Photo_Gallery/so... and en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dudley_Perkins_(motorcyclist) Here is another photo of Smith in the same car:

TVL1970 Thank you, again!!

A long exposure of Art Smith performing a flying demonstration at night with flares attached to his aircraft during the the last night (December 4, 1915) of the 1915 Panama-Pacific International Exposition (PPIE) in San Francisco. Here is newsreel footage of Smith flying that very night at the PPIE: www.youtube.com/watch?v=U6KVz655szc