The San Francisco call., 1909-07-25
WORKS OF THE OLD
MASTERS IN COLORS
New Processes of Photography
Reproduce Priceless Treasures

BERKELEY. July 24-Using photo
graphic plates in colors projected on a
screen, DR.. Frederick Mortimer Clapp.
Florentine student and authority on
art, will transport the old masters of
the brush to the United States during
a lecture next Tuesday afternoon at 4
o'clock before the students of the sum-
mer session of the University of Cali
fornia.
DR.. Clapp. besides being a noted art
lecturer and thoroughly at home with
his subject, is an expert photographer
and first conceived the idea of photo
graphing the work of the old masters
of the middle ages as well as modern
painters in their original colors for
projection as large as the original SUBJ
ject on a canvas screen.
He has spent many months expert
menting on the subject and has tried
a large number of the new processes
for color photography. He has also
engaged in photographing the famous
paintings of the world in the black and
white.
OBJECTION TO BLACK AND WHITE
He found that while the black and
white, the ordinary photography of to-
QdY, was useful many way II was
failure for the lecturer who endeav-
ored to discuss a portrait of an old
master from a screen projection in
these effects.
BLACK and white said DIR. Clapp to-
night has the effect when produced
on a screen of showing the mere draw
ing The picture loses its technique.
its harmony of color and its delicacy OF
expression
He then tried the three color
processes, so called. The objection to
this method was that the painting was
reproduced as if it were roughly
painted on the screen without the aid
of the master hand. Besides, the
photographs secured were too small
for practical use in the lecture room.
and after many attempts TO correct the
error DIR. Clapp turned to the Lumlere
and Jougla processes.
The first is the we'll known French
process for REPRODUCTION in the or1gl-
nal colors which has been the sub
iect of considera BILE experiment in the
United States. The Jougla process, Dr.
Clapp said tonight. was equally as sue
cessfuI for his work
WORKS UNDER DIFFICULTY
He then set to work in the art gall
leries of Florence. Milan, Rome and
other art centers to secure photo
graphs for his lantern slides. He had
In overcome the greatest difficulties
and oftimes had to make at least two
dozen photographs to secure one good
mega tive The greatest trouble was in
securing the intensity of light required
He was working during cloudy days
and it was almost impossible TO secure
negatives which were as perfect in
color harmony as the original MASTER
piece.
about 100 good plates which he will
display for the first time in his lecture
next Tuesday afternoon at the univer-
sity.
MANY PLATES DESTROYED
Last week DIR. Clapp endeavored TO
project few of the slides on screen
in preparation for the lecture. and more
than 25 plates were destroyed on ac-
count of the sensitiveness of the plates
used in an ordinary stereopticon ap-
paratus.
He thus had new difficulty to over
come and invented the water cooler
apparatus for holding his color plates
while they were in the stereopticon
machine. This method worked well and
he was able to expose starchy films 20
heat without their destruction.
Among some of the slides which he
will display during the lecture are;
Sir Frederick leighton, by himself:
"A Warrior and His Page" by Caroto;
"A Portrait by Kroyer of sweden; a
study by Salvatore Rosa; "AdoratiOn
of the Child" by Lorenzi de Credi:
portrait of Page, by Tfepolo; copy of
panel picture by Giorgiona; portrait of
the princess of Battenburg by Longhi;
Girl" by Pourbus, and others.