Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1871-09-23
PHOTOGRAPHIC.

monographs OF the human face serve few
ends OF uncrltical affection and many purposes
of vanity. They contrib ate certain pleasure
to many people who are easily pleased, and
they are supposed to he valuable, as a means of
facilitating an acquaintance with the physiog-
Monies of distant people For these reasons tie
multiplication of portraits in little has in recent
years increased at great ratio without any
hody apparently perceiving the absolute
injury they are doing to the generation. Pho
tographs in a very large majority of cases are
utterly devoid of what we NAV call artistic
quality, They are hard, rigid, blank, and ex-
pressionless. They give to the face a metallic
or cast-iron character that to the instructed
sense Is very repulsive.
Usually without middle tints, their harsh darks
are sharply limned against their dead whites, 80
that the picture loses every quality of gralatiOn
Ia shade, all sottness and ease of outline, and all
the better characteristics OF human expression.
Ii Is a dead face, and not a living one, that the
photograph give Instead of "A face instinct
and mobile with expression, rich in color and
tone, We have only the hard outlines of features
when our remembrance Is called upon to supply
with the lite and spirit of the original. Ii we
are acquainted with the original. our recollec-
tons supply what the picture omits; but no one
Who hrst sees tie photograph OF a face has
more than the most distant impression of what
that face really is. 1t is common enough
TO identify photograph of a face we are
familiar with, but very rarely, indeed, can we
identity a face which we have previously only
known by its miniature in little. There are,
however, few good photographs; that is one
ees sometimes in the showcases OF the photo
SIapHcIs eAeelienl pictures considered as works
OF art. But very rarely, indeed, 90 we find in
private hands anything superior to the usual
harsh, stiff performances. These choice show
pictures are invariably delicately pencilled, the
skill OF draughtsman supplying the gradations
and shadings which the rude work of Nature
omits. But as the majority of photographs have
notthe advantage OF this supplementary touching
these that we see in albums or upon rarlor walls
give an almost frightful idea of human nature
One of the most painful tasks in the world
Is 10 be called upon to examine a friends album.
What collection of rude and vulgar faces it is
sure TO present! The originals may be accom-
plshed and worthy people, but the sun-portraits
nave extracted the animating expression, and
gwen to the features prominence and coarse
ness that are simply libellous. In all photographs
the lips are usually so enlarged that faces are
made to look sensual which are not sensual; and
almost every face acquires in these miniatures
an indescribable vulgarity. One special injury
that this art has done us is in intensely chean-
ening and vulgariZng all our great men. Heals
OF celebrities were formerly engraved from DOR
traits painted by distinguished painters and
hence they had something of the spirit and life
like character of the original. Now they are
almost invariably engraved from photographs;
and, when the engraving is on steel, we have
the lines, magnfied in the photograph into sem
snail expression, reproduced with all their harsh
ness. We have the exaggerated lips; the lank
colorless cheeks; the sharp, rude angles and the
general hard. spiritless, metallic atmosphere of
the sun-picture from which it is copied.-ADDle-
toms Journal.