Guy Little Theatrical Photograph
1868
photographic
From the collection of Victoria and Albert Museum
1868
photographic
From the collection of Victoria and Albert Museum
Guy Little Theatrical Photograph is a 1868 photographic by Unknown, a Impressionism work, depicting Actor, held at Victoria and Albert Museum.
This photo shows John Lawrence Toole dressed as The Artful Dodger. He's posing in a studio setting. The photo is a type of portrait that was popular back then, used for 'cartes de visite' and 'cabinet cards', which were like trading cards with pictures of actors on them. These cards were made using a process involving glass negatives and card backing. To learn more about this kind of photography, look up the technique: sfumato.
An oval sepia photograph mounted on card depicts John Lawrence Toole in character as The Artful Dodger from the play *Oliver Twist*, staged at the Queen's Theatre in 1868. The image was used for the play's poster and is part of a large collection of 19th-century theatrical photographs assembled by Guy Little, later donated to the Victoria and Albert Museum. The photograph is an albumen print, a common format for the period’s popular "cartes de visite," which were small portrait cards traded and collected widely during the 1860s.
Read the full account in the museum source.
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