People of Charlottesville: Collodion Portraits
The Bridge Public Arts Iniative
November 3- 23, 2017
People of Charlottesville is a three part, multimedia project, of which this, Collodion Portraits, is the first part. The subsequent parts— Oral Histories and Video Portraits— will be released sometime in the near future.
People of Charlottesville is a series of vignettes and portraits of artists, immigrants, small business owners, long time residents and other interesting people who call Charlottesville home.
The pictures in this show were shot using the wet plate collodion process and the 1910-ish Kodak 2d 8x10 camera on display in the gallery. Wet plate photography started in the 1850s and for 25 years or so was the photographic process of choice until newer technologies provided cheaper and more practical options for picture making.
In the process a layer of collodion is poured onto a glass or metal plate and then sensitized in a bath of silver nitrate. The plate must be shot immediately after being sensitized and must be developed immediately after that.
It is a slow process, and a fun one to be a part of. It reminds me, in these modern times, that we are not just the present, and not just hurtling towards the future that is flying at us, but we are also the past, and we can slow down and look at things for a while, and breathe.
If you would like to be a part of this project or know someone who would be a good subject for it email me at camera@AaronFarrington.com
Thanks for looking.
Aaron, from Vermont
