Day and Night

In the nineteenth century, photographers patented many decorative processes whose names are now forgotten. At the Centennial Exhibition, the Ornamental Mirror Company displayed “photo-relievos” and photographs on mirrors. When Glenview was built, these sculptures would have been instantly recognizable to many Americans as famous reliefs by Danish artist Bertel Thorwaldsen. Much reproduced as plaster casts and prints, they are featured on Thorwaldsen’s self-portrait statue in Central Park.