Pictorialist Photography

What is going on in the image?
Here we see a young woman, wearing a silk and lace pale or white dress, she is perching on a detailed chair holding a handkerchief in front of a background that is painted or stitched in the pattern of a countryside field scene, and at the bottom of the image we see a wicker basket full of flowers. This photo is taken between 1910s-1920s.

How is the image typical of Pictorialism?
This photograph is typical of Pictorialism as it has all been staged.  The background is fake and this was chosen purposely as the photographer probably wanted to have more control over the light.  Pictorialism is a movement in photography where the photographers have created the image, there can be different reasons for this, to control lighting, to present the models or subjects in a certain way (wealthy) by including particular objects that mean different things.

Pictorialism is when an image has been created and styled rather than just documenting a scene. This photo was taken by Kate Seston Matthews, it’s called “Bridesmaid” and the girl in it is Kate’s neice.

What are the historical/technological or contexts for the image?
Historically, paintings and images were created to document peoples welth or value, so including the props in this photograph will indicate certain aspects of the model.

Who is the photographer?

Kate Seston Matthews took many photos and had different styles.  Looking at her collection of work she also does location photography which also have similar aspects to her pictorialist photos like this one.

Bibliography:

http://digital.library.louisville.edu/cdm/singleitem/collection/matthews/id/446/rec/188